The RWBY Volume 5 Team Test (for Disney Ks to become UKs)other events
by Gracekim20
Summary: The Disney Knights (besides Grace and Green) have to undergo different tests in other worlds to become Universal:the first is to Remnant of the Vol 5-era to help Team RNJR against Salem's group. Will the heroes help the team and save Haven or wil they break under pressure and accidently risk changing everything!(Warning:Timetravel-see 'The Magic Awakens' part AU/canon)(hiatus)
1. Chapter 1

The RWBY Chibi/ Volume 5 Team Test (For the other Disney Knights to become Universal Knights)

 **As part of this test, there will be time travel due to what happened to Ruby at the end of 'The Magic Awakens'.**

 **The character shorts (Minus the flashbacks) occur before the Knights arrive in Haven to join up with team RNJR, Qrow and Oscar.**

 **The Shorts dialogue and events belong to Rooster teeth. I'm just borrowing them and the volume 5 storyline for the sake of the plot + time travel.**

 **So, Spoilers for Volume 5 as whole once all of it has been uploaded to Youtube.**

Chapter 1- The First 'Universal' test

So, a few weeks after Green and I were made Universal knights...

Oswald, Mickey and Yen Sid called the others including the rouges to Disney Castle for an important meeting just before my 19th birthday.

"We have called you all here for a reason" King Mickey stated.

"You see, We need you to go back in time to the events of Volume 5 in Remnant to help Team RNJR. This will be your one of your main tests to achieve universal status" Oswald added.

"You will have to help them against the White Fang and Salem's group. You have to protect anyone at risk from Salem's wrath" Yen Sid stated.

"However, after that mission, You will all get to help the Kingdom Keepers with a very SPECIAL mission that involves the past of Disneyland and Walt Disney" Yen Sid pointed out.

"Yes and for that mission, I will guide you through it" another voice added as Wayne, a wise old man who was a long-time friend of Walt appeared beside Yen Sid.

"The one rule you must never break while you're in the past of Remant is try to prevent Ruby from her fate or warn them of the future, Understand?" Oswald added sternly.

"Yes, King Oswald" The knights replied in strict manner.

-S Danyal's mini scene tease-

 _Danyal looked into her book and she saw that the pages were blank as if it was an empty and she muttered, "Son of a bitch!"_

 _She kept flipping the pages and she asked, "What the hell happened?!"_

 _Danyal had something on her mind and said, "My book for some reason has blank pages. What do you suggest for it?"_

-end of mini tease-

"Hmmm, that could be signifying something. You may have to stay behind on this mission" Yen Sid replied.

"The RWBY one or the Keepers one?" Danyal asked.

"The RWBY one. You will be staying here during that mission to uncover the reason behind the blankness but you can still go on the Keepers' mission however you will be assisting the Farlie girls at the DSI (Disney School of Imagineering)" Wanye's 'hologram' added.

"This will be tons of fun!" Sky exclaimed.

"Well let's get to work" Danyal grinned.

"Good, now go and remember to be VERY Careful" Yen Sid reminded them as they travelled to Present-day Remant in order to travel back in time in that world for the mission to start.

"Good luck, Disney Knights" Yang whispered as she watched them use a watch machine to go back in time.

 _Around the events of Volume 5 (In the past)….._

 _Somewhere on Menagerie, Blake Belladonna was walking through a busy street looking for an associate of Ilia Amitola. As Blake looked for the associate, she remembered a conversation she had with Ilia on why the latter joined the White Fang despite passing for a Human:_

 _Flashback (set before the Black Trailer which was a few years before the start of Volume 1):_

 _"_ _Can I ask you something?" Blake asked while wearing her outfit from 'Volume 1' that was wore when she attended Beacon standing on a rooftop beside her companion Ilia Amitola_ _who was sitting cross-legged nearby._

 _"_ _Sure." Ilia replied._

 _"_ _Why… why'd you join the White Fang?" Blake asked._

 _"_ _Same reason as you." Ilia replied._

 _Blake: "But…" Blake began._

 _"_ _But why fight when I pass for Human?" Ilia interrupted._

 _Blake looked over at her friend and Ilia smiled at her._

 _"_ _It's okay. You're not the first person to ask. I know I look just like any other Human girl. And for years, that's how I was raised. We lived in Mantle with the other Faunus working the mines._ _But my parents wanted something better for me. They managed to enrol me in an Atlas prep school. Imagine that - a little Faunus girl from Mantle going to the city of dreams. (sighs) I felt like a princess. But I had to follow a set of rules. No bringing friends home, no talking about my parents…" Ilia began as she counted off the rules with the fingers on her left hand._

 _"_ _...and absolutely, under no circumstances, was I allowed to change colours. No one could know I was a Faunus." lIia added._

 _"_ _That... sounds terrible." Blake was slightly horrified by that specific rule._

 _"_ _It wasn't. It was confusing at first, but it wasn't hard… especially if it meant being in Atlas. Sometimes, the other girls would say things about the Faunus. That they were animals, that they were dirty, or they lied, and… I'd say these things with them… because I felt like I was one of them. And then, one day, there was a cave-in at the mines." Ilia continued._

 _Blake was watching her friend with increasing empathy and concern as Ilia told her about the day of the cave-in._

 _"_ _I was at school, when the news broke. Apparently, one of the workers there tripped while handling some agitated Dust crystals. The explosion caused a chain reaction. And my... friends… (looking away, her eyes turning blue) snickered" Ilia explained as she began to get emotional._

 _"_ _I lost control. Every inch of me turned blue as I wept._ _And suddenly… ...all the girls that I'd laughed and played with…...were scared of me." Ilia continued._

 _Blake was still looking with concern at her friend._

 _"_ _I'm sorry." Blake said, gravely._

 _Ilia's eyes turned yellow, and as she rose to her feet, her skin gradually turned red while her hair turned yellow._

 _"_ _Don't be." Ilia stated as she then struck a pose, proudly with fists by her sides._

 _"_ _I broke their teeth." She stated._

 _-End of Flashback-_

 _Sun Wukong joined Blake in finding the scaly-skinned Faunus who was currently buying a switch knife at a stall._

 _As they approach the associate Blake draws her weapon. The associate, however, notices Blake and proceeds to shoot at her twice with his revolver._

 _Blake blocks one of the shots and a chase ensues. The Faunus tries to escape and manages to cut the rope connecting a trailer to a car. Sun conjures two clones to stop the trailer from hurling down the street and urges Blake to continue the pursuit._

 _Just as Blake manages to trip the associate, Ilia arrives and frees him. The two one-time friends look at each other before she makes her getaway. Sun asks Blake what happened but she just says that the associate got away._

 _Possibly at the same time…_

 _Weiss was in the airplane she managed to flag after escaping the Schnee manor on her way to Mistral and thought back when she had been training with Winter before she fought the white armour (seen in the 'White Trailer') and got her scar:_

 _Weiss Schnee was in a snowy courtyard standing in front of a well whilst affixing her 'centred' hair near Schnee Manor._

 _She turned around and slowly walked toward the centre where she was engulfed by a storm and surrounded by white Beowolves._

 _They attacked her but she swiftly stabbed the first one in its mouth. More tred to attack but she evaded and struck away several with fire Dust that melted the surrounding ice and snow and dispelled the storm for a second, cutting down three Beowolves._

 _She dismembered more of the attacking Beowolves quite easily. Gusts of snow managed to disarm her and she got pounced on by a Beowolf. She used her hands to hold its muzzle off of her, but several more surrounded her, ready to also pounce._

 _"_ _Winter!" Weiss cried._

 _Five more Beowolves landed around Weiss, but all six disappear. Weiss rolled over and rose only to her knees. Winter tossed Myrtenaster into the ground before her by her approaching sister._

 _Winter was visibly not pleased and sighed._

 _"_ _I am not always going to be around to save you, Weiss." Winter stated._

 _Weiss stared at her sister before looking away, ashamed._

 _"_ _I'm sorry. I'll get better." Weiss promised._

 _Winter turned and walked away._

 _"_ _You'll have to if you ever want to leave." Winter stated._

 _Without getting up, Weiss just looked down pensively._

 _-end of flashback-_

 _Weiss opened her eyes abruptly, giving a soft gasp as she remembered she was on the same plane heading to Mistral._

 _She looked miserable and turned her head to gaze out the window. Her shoulders lifted as she inhaled and then exhaled while waiting to eventually land._

 _Yang was on her motorcycle Bumblebee going through what appeared to be Mistral as she thought back to when she helped Ruby with hand-to-hand combat._

 _-Flashback-_

 _Sometime before Yang left to go to Beacon Academy (and Volume 1 as a whole)…._

 _Yang was trying to help Ruby improve on her hand-to-hand combat while wearing her old beacon outfit._

 _Ruby complained about the training, due to her inexperience with hand to hand combat, but Yang insisted. Ruby tries to fight Yang but is easily overpowered and is forced to escape into the bushes with her Semblance._

 _Yang commends her for managing to dodge her but chides her for running away. Ruby doesn't respond. Instead, heavy stomping sounds approach Yang and an Ursa reveals itself._

 _Yang fights the Ursa, but is ultimately thrown away. It then notices Ruby and tries to attack her. At the last moment, Yang puts herself between the both of them. She gets hit but activates her Semblance to clash with the Ursa one last time in order to obliterate it._

 _Yang gets thrown against a tree and Ruby asks if she is okay while apologizing for not helping. Yang states that it is okay and that she always has her back._

 _-End of Flashback-_

 _Yang accelerated to her destination._

 _Meanwhile…._

 ** _As the rest of the universe (Except Remnant due to time travel was in its own dome due to being past events that have already occurred in RWBY's timeline) were still moving in real time during this adventure,_** _Neo was out looking for someone who could her get back at Ruby for Roman's death._

 _Evil Morty who was now President of the rick Citadel had sent out Lizard Morty, Glasses Morty and Fat Morty find suitable candidates to help Eclipsa, Nova, Toffee and Aku as a background team._

 _On his list was Baron Dreadbane, Turbo K.O and Shadowy Figure who were in present-day._

 _The three mortys ended up in the past right in Neo's path with a message for her from 'President' Morty:_

 _'_ _We can help you get revenge if you join our circle, in return for information on Salem and the Disney knights'._

 _Neo wrote down a reply for them_

 _'_ _I'm in but can you get me a partner?'._

 _"_ _We can do just that for you, Miss" Glasses Morty replied._

 _Neo smiled._

 _XXXXXX_

 _We arrived in Mistral before Qrow and Team RNJR had arrived and noticed Leo was talking to someone._

 _Leif was wearing a green and yellow outfit that reflected his heritage with two Sai daggers that could transform into boomerangs._

 _Chloe was wearing a black and pink bodysuit with a black and pink key symbol on the back with two pink pistols that double as_ machetes.

 _Sky had a blue colour scheme outfit with guns that looked similar to the keyblade blaster transformation from the KH3 D23 trailer with a moon symbol._

 _Bernice was wear a dark green jacket with black stripes, brown jeans, black shoes and a mickey symbol on the back of her jacket with her katana_ _sword on her belt._

 _Bill was a lizard faunus in this world so he kept his tail and wore a black biker outfit to blend in. He still kept his famous boomerang sword._

 _Bryn was secretly a bat faunus but was wearing black jacket and blue jeans to hide that trait and had chakrams like Lea's only hers were black and gold and could double as throwing knives._

 _Kenny was wearing a grey outfit that was influenced by Disney themes with a_ ** _tantō_** _sword._

 _Hollie was wearing a orange and rose outfit that was influenced by pop culture with a diamond symbol._

 _Chee chee was wearing a purple and green dress inspired by the 1920's with a sword symbol._

 _I was wearing a purple themed 90's outfit with a_ two-handed flame-bladed _flambard_ sword in the hilt.

 _"_ _Make sure you get information about the spring maiden" The voice said._

 _"_ _I'll….try" Leo replied, in a reluctant voice._

 _"_ _Something doesn't feel right" I stated._

 _"_ _What if someone tries to make Haven fall next, then Atlas and Vacuo?" Kenny asked._

 _"_ _Then we help Ruby and her friends to prevent that. Wait, why am I here?!" I realised._

 _"_ _To help us pass our test remember?" Sky offered._

 _"_ _Oh… Right. How about we stay in one of the dorm rooms while we wait for team RNJR to show up ok?" I suggested._

 _"_ _Yeah" everyone else agreed._

 _Meanwhile in an undisclosed place that was the white fang headquarters…._

"I need to speak with Sienna Khan as soon as possible" Adam requested.

"Are you alone?" A guard asked.

"For the moment, yes but I have a guest that is going to tag along with me" Adam replied.

"Alright, go right ahead, Lieutenant Adam" The guard stated as Adam headed inside where Sienna Khan resided.

The door closed behind him.

XXXX

"Illa seems to be wavering in her allegiance, should we get ruin of her?" Corsac asked.

"No, she could be another good double agent to use to our advantage" Salem replied.

A familiar figure arrived at Salem's hideout.

"Salem, I have been sent by someone from the future to help you and other villains to prepare for something big" Nova announced.

"I'm guessing you know Nick Wizard?" Salem asked.

"Yes, but I cannot disclose what happened to him or it will disrupt the time flow of this world" Nova replied.

"Very well, I'll see how you and your allies can help with my plans and try to help you with yours" Salem stated.

-Flashback-

 _Just 3 days after Nick Wizard was sent to the mirror dimension, He sent a message through his RWBY scroll watch to Coral._

 _-In the future of 2022 just before Kaito's halfa future reign begins-_

 _Coral got the message about alerting Nova and Evil Morty and got to work._

 _-2 hours later-_

 _She brought the two of them to her future to fill them in on the plan and gave them a list of the new villains that were going to pop up of the next 10 years._

 _"_ _So where should I go first?" Nova asked._

 _"_ _You can go to the world of Remant but in the past to give Salem a little hand but after the events of Volume 5 have happened; you MUST leave and go to the next world with either Grimm Raven, Raven Branwen or someone of your choosing" Coral warned._

 _"_ _Understood" Nova replied._

 _"_ _As for you, 'President' Morty. I think you and Neo could make a great partnership on behalf of Nick Wizard" Coral added._

 _"_ _Ok, I'll send two mortys to her right away" Evil Morty (AKA President Morty) agreed._

 _"_ _Good, here are the rest of your instructions from Nick Wizard himself. Remember, this is all leading up to a big finish once the knights are all fully-fledged adults ok? Make it count, It's not just Nick Wizard counting on us; It's 'Dark Zero' as well. Never forget that" Coral reminded them._

 _They both nodded as the two were sent away; Evil Morty to the citadel and Nova to Volume 5-era Remnant where Salem resided (Possibly on the dragon-shaped island)._

 _"_ _Don't worry, Nick Wizard. Plan C is a go" Coral grinned._

 _-End of Flashback-_

 ** _To be continued…_**

 ** _Next will be the start to Volume 5 but with my twist as per usual._**

 ** _Don't worry, I'll have it figure out once all of Vol 5 is online, ok?_**

 ** _I hope you liked the first chapter._**

 ** _I'll make sure it still feels like the knights (apart from Grace) are going through a test ok?_**

 ** _Thanks for the support._**

 ** _Read and review or Salem will kill you!_**

 ** _RWBY fan Grace, out!;)_**

 ** _PS: Yes, everything is connected._**


	2. Chapter 2

_Chapter 2- Welcome to Haven (the first of many tasks)_

 _-Triumph (the Volume 5 opening song) by Casey Lee Williams plays-_

 _A few days later…_

 _"_ _Guys, before Team RNJR arrives, I need to make sure you all know what to do. Remember for now we must not tell them about Lionheart possibly being a spy, so we don't accidentally endanger anyone or make them aware of that fact too soon could cause a chain reaction" I pointed out._

 _"_ _Ok, we won't tell them. They'll have to figure it out on their own" The others agreed._

 _About 2 hours later…_

Qrow Branwen showed off Mistral to Team RNJR as they arrived before taking them to Haven Academy to see Leonardo Lionheart.

The academy was emptied out due to the remaining staff having been given leave after fighting Grimm on the borders of the kingdom.

As Team RNJR and Qrow went towards Professor Lionheart's office, we came out to greet them.

"Hello, um we haven't met directly but um we're the Disney Knights and we would like to help you with your quest" I offered.

"I'm Qrow, why exactly were you hiding here?" Qrow questioned us.

"Um, we wanted to greet you first" Sky replied, swiftly.

Ruby and the others were about to introduce themselves when I quickly stopped them.

"We know who you are. We watched the Vytal Festival, um so you're going to see Lionheart?" I asked.

They nodded.

"Can we tag along?" Sky pleaded.

"Ok" Ruby replied to Qrow's chagrin.

When we all faced Lionheart and we all introduced ourselves, he explained that classes were dismissed because the teachers were off fighting grimm which made Qrow very unhappy as this meant there was no one around guarding the relic.

Leo was worried about not know where the spring maiden was, and Ruby was confused about why she was so important.

"The Relics are each locked inside a chamber that can only be opened by a specific Maiden. Winter for the gift of Creation, Summer for Destruction, Fall for Choice and Spring for Knowledge. (taking another drink) Spring is the problem." Qrow explained.

"What happened to her?" Ren asked.

"She was determined, at first, when she inherited her powers, but the weight of responsibility proved to be too much for the child. She… ran. Abandoned her training, everyone. That was over a decade ago. There's no telling where she could be now." Lionheart explained.

"I… know. At least… I have a pretty good idea." Qrow confessed.

"(widening his eyes and standing up) Are you serious?" Lionheart asked.

"It's not exactly good news." Qrow pointed out.

"(walking around to Qrow from behind his desk) What are you talking about? This is incredible news! (taking Qrow by the shoulders and shaking him) After all these years! Where?!" Lionheart asked in excitement.

"(shoving him off) I did some digging around. Looks like, after Spring ran away, she was picked up by bandits, specifically the Branwen tribe." Qrow explained.

"Raven." Lionheart said, gravely.

Ruby let out a small gasp of surprise.

"Yang's mom?" Jaune asked.

"That's right." Qrow replied, causally.

Qrow pulled out his Scroll, walking over to and placing it on Lionheart's desk. The hologram monitor on the desk displayed a map of Remnant.

"(as the map pulls up a zoomed-in section) That's about where they've set up their main camp. It's where they fall back to after raids and scouting missions. Raven's managed to gain a lot of followers since she returned to the tribe, and I'm sure when the Spring Maiden showed up, it only made things easier" Qrow explained.

Lionheart: (walking over and patting Qrow on the back) Well, Qrow, I've got to hand it to you. With these coordinates, we can mount a retrieval force and head out in a few weeks.

Lionheart walked over to the computer, while Qrow clenched his fists.

"A few weeks?" Qrow asked, in annoyance.

Lionheart pulled up a hologram keyboard and taps a few keys, while Qrow's Scroll displayed the text "COPYING FILES", followed by "DISCONNECTED".

"That's right." Lionheart replied as he walked back around behind the desk.

"Leo, maybe you didn't hear me. My sister has the Spring Maiden, and I know where she is. (placing his hands on the desk) We need to go, as soon as possible! (knocking books off the desk)" Qrow cried.

"And perhaps you didn't hear me. This Kingdom is in shambles. "As soon as possible" does not mean tomorrow. It means, as soon as I can convince the council that I need Huntsmen more than they do. Unfortunately, bandit tribes aren't very high on their list of priorities when the threat of war is just on the horizon." Lionheart pointed out, angrily.

"Then damn the council. We'll do it ourselves. You and I are trained Huntsmen and these kids aren't exactly pushovers." Qrow stated.

"(jumping up while Ruby fistpumps) Yeah!" Nora cried.

"(standing) Perhaps there's a more peaceful way to approach this?" Ren asked.

"We need to get Spring as far away from here as possible. And Raven isn't going to give up her most prized possession without a fight." Qrow stated.

"Unfortunately, you and your sister are evenly matched. And I'm not the fighter I used to be. No offense, but these students and I can't take on an entire bandit tribe and a Maiden that's no doubt had years to hone her skills. We need to be positive we can apprehend Spring, because if we fail Raven and her tribe will scatter. And we'll be lost. We get one shot at this. And it needs to be perfect." Lionheart warned Qrow.

"(staring several beats before sighing) You know Oz wouldn't be happy with any of this if he were here." Qrow pointed out.

"Perhaps you're right. But he's not. I'm doing the very best I can." Lionheart agreed.

"Wait, what about us? We can help you take on the bandits and maybe call Taiyang for help?" I suggested.

"That might not be a wise idea, dragging Taiyang into this" Qrow sighed.

"Why?" Sky asked.

"Because he's busy at Signal and well….. if he were to see Raven again it would bring back painful memories" Qrow stated.

"There has to be something we can do." Ruby persisted.

"What about Cinder? She came with Emerald and Mercury from Haven. Do you have anything on them?" Jaune asked.

"We pulled their files after the Fall of Beacon. Nothing but lies and forgeries." Lionheart sighed.

Jaune tightened his fists and glared at the floor in anger.

"They weren't from Mistral" I mumbled to myself.

There was more silence before Qrow decided to speak.

"Well, I can't say this has been a warm reunion, Leo." Qrow stated.

"I'm sorry. I know you've all travelled a long way. But I will do everything I can to help." Lionheart promised.

"Sure. We'll stay in the city for the time being. (taking out his Scroll and waggling it at Lionheart) Local comms are still up. Keep in touch. (turning away) Come on, kids" Qrow responded in a semi-positive manner.

They all began to file out of the room. At the rear, Ruby turns around to face Lionheart again.

"It was nice meeting you, Professor" Ruby smiled.

Lionheart thought for a second about how to respond.

"Likewise." He replied.

 _I should probably suggest to Watts to refrain from mentioning those other people who are with Qrow's group to Salem until we know more_ He thought.

After Ruby departed, Lionheart hung his head, looking stressed. A holographic W projected up from his desk which indicated Arthur Watts' voice was on the line.

"Oh, Leo. We have got to work on your improvisational skills." Watts stated from the hologram.

"Watts, can you maybe not mention those people who call themselves 'Knights' to Salem yet?" Lionheart asked.

"Why?" Watts asked, in a stern and suspicious manner.

"Because….we should learn more about them first before reporting to Salem?" Lionheart suggested.

"Ok, fine but remember this was YOUR suggestion" Watts stated in a threatening manner.

Lionheart gulped.

We went back to our room for a group meeting.

"Knights? Come in, knights!" Mickey called through the scroll.

"Yes, Mickey? Is something wrong?" I answered.

"We've just discovered that Neo and Akira, one of Salem's Grimm faunus henchmen is suppose to arrive in Mistral at some point to give Ruby a message. You have about 3 months before that happens, so you must make sure Salem's group do not see you under any circumstance as she currently thinks you're too busy preparing to fight Nick Wizard. So be VERY careful" Mickey warned us.

"Understood" we replied as the call ended.

"So how are we meant to help Team RNJR without Salem's group discovering us?" Sky whispered.

"I'm not sure yet but maybe we need someone from this world to be our back-up, but who?" Bryn wondered.

"Hmmm…. Given what I can recall…we'll need Oscar and someone who can help from the inside…." I began.

Then someone knocked on our door.

I opened it.

It was Qrow!

"Would you like to help me tag along to the bar?" He suggested.

Everyone looked at me, due to my age.

I sighed.

"I'll help you. Guys, you need to stay here. We'll stay in touch by scrolls ok?" I replied.

Everyone nodded and, so I accompanied Qrow to the bar to my chagrin.

Qrow gave Sky a device to scan people for their semblance in case training took too long and scanned Bernice.

Her semblance was the ability to make portals to the person she thought about, is aware of or has a connection to (so a bit like Raven).

Meanwhile…

Weiss Schnee was on her flight to Mistral with the pilot who is helping to keep them under the radar. When a call for help came in over the radio, she had to accede to his wishes to not go help.

Sun Wukong and the Belladonna family just failed in confronting the local White Fang representatives with the information on Ilia Amitola's Scroll. Ilia herself surreptitiously visited Blake Belladonna, unrepentant about letting the blame be passed to her. She urged Blake to stop and leave before it's too late, but knew it was useless as Blake refused to leave.

Yang Xiao Long stopped to fuel up Bumblebee and get some water. She punched out a drunkard who hits on her and told the bartender that she was looking for someone.

He warned her that the only significant person nearby was Raven Branwen and that she does not want to get mixed up with bandits. The drunkard overheard this from outside and suggested that he might be able to help Yang find who she is looking for.

Oscar Pine found Qrow at a bar and asked for his cane back. Qrow gave him Ozpin's cane and later I helped the two get back to the house where RNJR was staying in.

 _Meanwhile…_

 _Nova was sent to assist Adam and Hazel at the White fang HQ which was in a unknown location in case anything went wrong like the threat of a 'coup' or something under the guise of a white fang member due to her 'usual' appearance being able to pass as a 'Faunus' even though she was from an entirely different dimension (And timeline) with a white fang mask to go with her cloak._

 _"_ _I'm Nova Cyan, escort for Adam Taurus. Please, let me through I need to make sure the negotiations run smoothly" Nova requested._

 _One of the guards let her through, thinking she was a reptile Faunus guard escort._

 _She went inside as her cheekmarks began to glow as she mentally prepared herself for what she was about to witness…._

 _Elsewhere…_

President Morty got to work finding a new partner for Neo.

"I have only a handful of options to pick from" He pondered.

On his list of 'actual Partners' for Neo included Pandora who was nearly finished with helping Merlot create newer Grimm for Salem's 'fall of Haven' plan, Akira (Even though he was following Neo in the shadows), Nuri, a wolf faunus white fang loyalist dressed in black and even Adam himself.

"So many to choose from" Evil Morty pondered.

'This could take a while' he thought.

Back in Haven….

 _Jaune, Ren and Nora were sitting on a pair of red couches in a living room when there was_ _a knock on the door. They tensed and look at each other before Jaune cautiously went to open it._

 _Oscar was on the other side with us, looking hesitant and uncomfortable. Jaune looks back over his shoulder at the other two, and Nora shrugs._

 _"_ _Can I… help you?" Jaune asked._

 _"_ _Um... yeah. Is there a Ruby Rose here?" Oscar responded._

 _Ren and Nora immediately stood up, tense and defensive._

 _"_ _Why?" Nora asked, darkly._

 _"_ _Well…" Oscar began._

 _He looked to his left and Qrow appeared, moving drunkenly and grabbed Oscar by the shoulders._

 _"_ _I found him!" Qrow cried._

 _Qrow snorted into his hand and continued laughing as he stumbled into the house._

 _"_ _I think her uncle could use some help." Oscar stated._

 _Qrow almost made it to the couch Jaune just vacated before he stumbled and saved his balance by falling backward onto the cushions._

 _"_ _Whoa. Ugh. (settling onto his back and folding his arm over his eyes) I found him." Qrow repeated._

 _"_ _(offscreen) What is going out there?! (stomping into the living room) Can't a girl read her comics in peace?" Ruby cried._

 _Qrow burped and chuckled, catching Ruby's attention. She sighed and put a hand to her forehead exasperatedly._

 _"_ _Qrow, did you get drunk again?" Ruby asked_ , _exasperatedly._

 _"Maybe." Qrow replied in a giddly voice._

 _"_ _Oh. (finally stepping in as he looks at Ruby) You have silver eyes." Oscar said as he echoed Ozpin's words._

 _Ruby looked at him, a touch surprised. She turned to Ren and Nora, who shrugged again, before looking back at Oscar._

 _"_ _Who… are you?" Ruby asked._

 _Qrow chuckled from the couch._

 _"_ _Uh… Well. My name is Oscar Pine." Oscar began._

 _"_ _Wait for it…" Qrow interjected._

 _"_ _But you probably know me as… Professor Ozpin." Oscar finished._

 _RNJR all gasped, and looked confused. Jaune took a couple steps back. Qrow continued chuckling._

 _"_ _(punching his fists into the air) I did it!" Qrow exclaimed while incredibly drunk._

 _He fell off the couch onto the floor, startling Nora._

 _"(hands going to her mouth) Ooh!" Nora cried._

 _"_ _Yay! Oscar is here" I squealed._

 _"_ _Guys, you need to come right away. Oscar is here" I reported._

 _"_ _Negative, Grace. It's safer if you gain their trust for the sake of our team first before we join you" Sky pointed out._

 _"_ _Understood, I'll keep in touch" I promised as the line ended._

 _"_ _Don't worry, guys. You can trust me and my friends" I reassured everyone._

 _"_ _Can you prove it?" Oscar asked._

 _"_ _Of course" I replied._

 _"_ _So, do we have a time limit to this adventure?" I added._

 _2 months tops_ Ozpin told Oscar.

"About 2 months" He replied.

"We're DOOOMED!" I cried.

"Minus her break down, let me explain why I am like this" Oscar began.

XXX

Sometime after Ozpin's explanation, Bernice decided to have a talk with Qrow.

"Do you have a sister?" she asked.

"Yes, her name is Raven but our relationship is very complicated due to Ozpin" Qrow sighed.

Bernice looked at him with intrigue.

"If you want to know more, you might as well ask her yourself" Qrow suggested.

Bernice's eyes lit up.

"Great idea!"

She then went off to tell me the good news even though she didn't have control of her semblance just yet.

To be continued….

 **Next time will be Dread in the Air. Don't worry, Things are going to spice up and I'll do my best to avoid contradictions with how I set up Ruby's sealed fate.**

 **For now, I'm going to wait till all 14 episodes are online to carry on this story just to make sure it fits the time limit I have for my characters. (and don't worry a certain character who dies, will not die immediately in my story ;)**

 **The fact that there is a time limit to this mission/ test makes the sakes of the Knights not being discovered b Salem all the more essential!**

 **See ya next time! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

_Chapter 3- untimely progress? (A Dread in the Air and unforeseen Complications)_

 ** _Ebony Sun (No it's not the Grimm Faunus OC I made a while back that's called Raven Ebony) belongs to Samantha Peace HeartStar. I'm just borrowing her for the sake of the plot and so the Knights have 'Inside' help._**

 _Later that same day…._

Watts came to Lionheart's office to collect him for his report update.

 _A brief exchange of looks was made as Lionheart turned his head away from Watts who smirked in response._

 _The two soon entered a secret hallway adjacent to the office. At the end of the curved hallway was a circular room containing a Seer Grimm._

 _The Seer had a small, spherical body that was covered with bone-like plates, along with red tentacles ending in white, bony barbs and a single eye._

 _"_ _After you." Watts offered._

 _Watts pushed Lionheart closer to the Seer Grimm._

 _"_ _Your Grace, are… you there?" Lionheart asked._

 _The red smoke-like substance contained in the head of the Seer Grimm shifted to form an image of Salem and Cinder Fall at their location in Salem's Domain._

 _"Hello, Leonardo. Do you have something to report?" Salem asked, in a calm voice._

 _Salem and Cinder were also looking through a Seer Grimm to communicate with Lionheart and Watts._

 _"Of course, ma'am. I would not waste your time, if not." Lionheart replied, in a slightly nervous voice._

 _"_ _I'm still just so fascinated by this creature. Cinder dear, are we coming through? (tapping the Seer) Can you see us clearly? Well, as clearly as you can." Watt asked, in a teasing fashion._

 _"_ _Shut… up." Cinder said in annoyance._

 _"_ _Oh goody, you've recovered." Watts said, sarcastically._

 _"_ _Your report. What is it?" Salem asked._

 _"_ _I've… I've found the Spring Maiden." Lionheart reported._

 _"_ _Is that so? Well done. Arthur, had I known how useful you'd be in expediting this process, I would've sent you long, long ago." Salem remarked._

 _"_ _As much as I'd love to take credit, ma'am, I can't say that either of us are to thank for this development. I guess you could say, a little birdie told us." Watts stated._

 _"_ _Explain." Salem said, curiously._

 _"You see, ma'am, Qrow Branwen arrived at Haven Academy earlier today. He believes Spring has taken residence with his sister's tribe." Lionheart explained._

 _"_ _Is... the girl... with him?" Cinder asked, in a slightly aggressive tone._

 _"_ _Yes, Miss Rose was in attendance." Watts replied, sharply._

 _"_ _And you know of the tribe's location?" Salem questioned._

 _"_ _Yes ma'am! But you have to hurry! Qrow is already at odds with my—" Lionheart began._

 _Salem made a face of annoyed concentration and in response one of the Seer Grimm's tentacles shot out to wrap around Lionheart's throat and choked him._

 _"_ _Leonardo, do you remember the first time we met? I remember. I remember your fear. But, since that day, you've been extraordinarily brave. I won't forget all that you've done for me. Do not forget everything that I can do to you." Salem warned him._

 _The Seer Grimm slowly brought the point of another tentacle close to the face of Lionheart before drawing it back and released him from the chokehold._

 _"_ _Cinder, you and your team will meet with Doctor Watts, and together, convince Raven Branwen that the survival of her people depends on her cooperation. Once you have Spring under control, escort her to the Relic and contact Hazel. The White Fang was promised the destruction of Haven, and they'll have it once we have what we need." Salem ordered._

 _"_ _Understood." Watt replied._

 _"Not you, Arthur. Tyrian's in need of a new tail." Salem pointed out._

 _"What happened to his old one?" Watts asked._

 _"_ _Guess." Salem replied._

 _"_ _The silver-eyed girl?" Watts asked._

 _Cinder looked stern and grunted as acknowledgement._

 _"_ _It will be done." Watts stated._

 _"_ _Good." Salem said, in a pleased tone._

 _The image of Salem disappeared from the Seer Grimm to show the connection had ended._

 _"_ _Seems Qrow was right, Lionheart. The students aren't pushovers." Watts stated._

 _A figure had been listening in on their conversation and quietly ran away._

 _In Salem's Domain, Cinder was clearly unhappy._

 _"_ _You're free to speak your mind." Salem stated._

 _"_ _I don't understand. Working with bandits? Keeping Ruby alive? What's the point? We're strong enough to take what we want by force!" Cinder exclaimed._

 _"_ _Never underestimate the usefulness of others. Take Leonardo; he was one of Ozpin's most trusted, and yet now…_

 _You will have the power I promised you, when the time is right. But remember that it comes with a cost. If Ruby Rose has learned to harness her gift, then you must take care to protect yours. There's only so much I can do to aid you." Salem replied, wisely._

 _Cinder bowed to Salem and went to exit the room._

 _"_ _And Cinder, before you go, inform Tyrian… (her smile turning to a frown) that I wish to have a word with him." Salem added._

 _Cinder smiled, nodded in acknowledgement of Salem's order and left the room._

 _Back in the Haven dorm room…._

 _"_ _Do you think Grace will be ok, trying to gain Team RNJR's trust on behalf of all of us on her own?" Sky asked._

 _"_ _She'll be fine. I hope…" Kenny replied although he looked unsure._

 _"_ _Remember, we have to lay low for now and hope she makes progress. For the sake of the future of Remant, Haven and Ruby" Hollie reminded them._

 _Something arrived in the mail for them which turned out to be Patch who had been sent to assist from Yen Sid._

 _"_ _I'm here to help you guys keep getting supplies while you hide in here" Patch stated._

 _"_ _We're saved!" Sky whispered in excitement._

 _"_ _Oh and you need someone to help you from inside the White Fang right? Well, we think we've found someone suitable to help. She's called Ebony Sun and is currently assisting Ilia from the shadows" patch reported._

 _Meanwhile…._

 _Weiss Schnee continued her flight to Mistral._

 _Along the way, the Cargo Airship she was traveling in encounters the source of the distress call which they heard earlier in the journey._

 _The other airships were destroyed by a swarm of Lancers._

 _Through her cargo ship's maneuvering around the floating islands of Lake Matsu in addition to her own employment of Dust and her Semblance, Weiss managed to ward off the swarm of pursuing Lancers._

 _In the process, however, a Queen Lancer was disturbed. While Weiss successfully managed to defeat the Queen Lancer through the use of the Armoured Knight, the cargo ship took significant damage in the process and ultimately crashed._

 _The cargo ship had crashed in a forest. Weiss was lying injured on the ground with clothes dirtied as two bandits approached her and the sun was beginning to set._

 _"_ _Help… please." Weiss begged._

 _"_ _What do you think?" One of the Bandits asked._

 _Raven approached from offscreen to take a position between the two bandits and directly above Weiss._

 _"_ _I think… we just hit the jackpot." Raven stated._

 _Weiss' face turned to one of concern as she looked up at Raven, who stomped on her face, causing her to lose consciousness._

 _On the same day that Weiss was kidnapped…._

 _Inside the White Fang headquarters, Adam Taurus knelt before Sienna Khan, who was sitting on a throne flanked by two guards on either side of her._

 _Nova managed to blend with the other guards who were ACCTUALLY loyal to Sienna while Adam was focused on Sienna._

 _Sienna Khan was a female, middle-aged, Bengal tiger-based Faunus with orange eyes, dark complexion and wild black, chin length hair with an asymmetrical bob style with an extra pair of ears (Tiger cat ears), and her body was adorned with numerous tattoos resembling tiger stripes with golden earrings on all four of her ears, as well as a small jewel on her forehead._

 _She was dressed in a form fitting black dress with light green accents on the rims of the outfit; the dress left most of her back open, had two long splits on the side which revealed a pair of black shorts, a shorter split in the front and a small squared keyhole. Over the dress she wore a back revealing red cape with gold accents, as well as a green waist cincher with red rims that had a black belt over it, which fastened a green pouch on her right hip. Aside from that, she wore black stockings in conjunction with green sandals that had red laces which were tied to her calves, as well as a black elbow length fingerless glove on her right hand._

 _"_ _Adam. I'm not going to repeat myself, so I want you to listen when I tell you that the White Fang will not attack Haven Academy." Sienna stated._

 _"_ _High Leader Khan, I am begging you." Adam pleaded._

 _"_ _You should beg for forgiveness and nothing else! The assault you led on Beacon was not the great victory you clearly think it was, and you should be more grateful your punishment was not more severe. You are a symbol for many in our organization, but that doesn't make you infallible." Sienna stated._

 _"_ _I was merely trying to follow your example, High Leader." Adam pointed out._

 _"_ _And what example might that be?" Sienna challenged him._

 _"_ _Strength. Strength and unwavering conviction. The humans have seen that strength now." Adam replied with determination._

 _"_ _I was one of the first to suggest violence where violence was necessary. Peace bred complacency and acceptance of our place in the world. I will not allow humanity to push us down without pushing them back. But the destruction of the Huntsman Academies crosses a line! The loss of the CCT has brought global communication to a crawl! And the White Fang is more of a target now than ever before! You have justified humanity's campaign against us, and for what?! Empty promises from a group of humans? Humans we still know nothing about, and come and go as they please! These are not examples of strength, Adam. They are examples of your talents being diminished by shortsightedness!" Sienna cried._

 _"_ _If you want to know more about the humans, then why not talk to one of them yourself?" Adam suggested._

 _Adam rose and turned toward the entrance to the room._

 _"_ _Hazel!" Adam cried._

 _Hazel opened the doors to the large room._

 _"_ _Took you long enough." Hazel stated._

 _As Hazel entered, Sienna Khan rose from her seat and her guards all pointed their spears toward Hazel._

 _"_ _What is this?!" Sienna cried._

 _"_ _Apologies. I don't aim to cause any trouble." Hazel pointed out, politely._

 _"_ _You've brought a human to this location?" Sienna asked in shock._

 _"_ _You should hear what he has to say." Adam replied, calmly._

 _"_ _This is grounds for execution!" Sienna exclaimed._

 _"_ _Ma'am, please. Nobody needs to die today. (kneeling) I'm just asking for a moment of your time." Hazel pleaded in a steady voice._

 _"_ _The longer you stay here, the less of a chance you have of leaving alive." Sienna warned him._

 _"_ _I'll take those chances, if you don't mind." Hazel responded in confidence, respectfully._

 _Sienna sat back down, her guards returned to their neutral position and Hazel rose again before continuing to speak._

 _"_ _You don't like me. You have no reason to like me. But you don't have to like me to get the results you want." Hazel stated in his smooth voice._

 _"_ _I'm starting to doubt either of you fully comprehend what it is that I want. I want humanity to fear the Faunus, to know that we demand respect! I do not want to start a war with the humans that we cannot win!" Sienna explained in annoyance._

 _"_ _That's where you're wrong." Adam began with conviction._

 _Sienna and Hazel focused on Adam who began to advance toward Sienna while he continued to speak._

 _"_ _We can win a war against the humans. Not only because we have the support of Hazel's master, but because the Faunus are the dominant species of this planet. We're better than humans. We have everything humans have and more. Humans shouldn't just fear the Faunus, they should serve the Faunus." Adam finished, proudly._

 _"_ _I've had enough of this conversation for tonight. Guards, take them away." Sienna ordered._

 _Some of the guards remained stationary._

 _"I said, take them away!" Sienna cried._

 _"_ _I will admit, Sienna, you were right about my popularity. My followers in Vale already see me as the true High Leader. And many here in Mistral feel the same." Adam said in a cunning tone with a hint of chilliness._

 _Four, armed White Fang soldiers entered through the main doors and stopped while pointing their weapons into the room as Sienna rose to her feet._

 _"_ _What are you doing?" Hazel asked._

 _"_ _What's right for the Faunus. From this day forward, I will be the one to lead the White Fang." Was Adam's direct response._

 _Nova realised what was happening and sent a message to Salem._

 _"_ _Easy peasy, time freazy" She whispered as her cheekmarks glowed._

 _Her magic filtered into her semblance which affected time around her._

 _No one else noticed that she was approaching Sienna as they couldn't see her while her 'semblance' was active._

 _Her time magic was literally her Semblance due to the rules of Remant._

 _Four more soldiers revealed themselves with their weapons drawn, two on each side of the room, as Sienna's guards pointed their weapons at her. Sienna quickly judged the situation, though taken by surprise. Her eyes narrowed darkly._

 _Nova used her transformed wand sword to shield Sienna and strengthen her aura for about 10 seconds._

 _"_ _If you think I'll just step aside and follow beneath you, you're wrong." Sienna pointed out, gravely._

 _As she turned toward him, Sienna was impaled by Adam's weapon._

 _"_ _I know." Adam replied._

 _He lifted the blade, making it slide deeper into Sienna's body and lifting it off the ground. Fists clenched, her body shook from the damage and Adam took advantage of her closer proximity to rest a hand on her shoulder and speak into her ear._

 _"_ _Thank you, Sienna. You were there when our people needed you, but they need me now. I'm sorry you couldn't see this through to the end." Adam whispered._

Please be only 10 seconds Nova thought, desperately.

 _Sienna growled at this and lifted her hand to claw at Adam's neck. Before she made contact Adam swiftly removed his weapon from Sienna, causing her body to fall to the ground and roll to the bottom of the steps leading up to her throne. The White Fang soldiers began to withdraw their weapons as Hazel looked down upon her body before returning his sight back to Adam with an annoyed look._

 _"_ _Give our former leader a proper burial. All who were here tonight will claim that Sienna was murdered by a human Huntsman. Sienna Khan will become a martyr for our cause, her final act as High Leader." Adam ordered._

 _All of the White Fang soldiers left the room, two carrying Sienna's body with them, leaving Adam and Hazel the only ones remaining._

 _Nova trailed them as they left the room and took Sienna to a safe place where the soldiers who WERE still loyal were staying._

 _"_ _When were you planning on telling me about that?" Hazel asked._

 _Adam withdrew a cloth from his back pocket and slid it across Wilt's blade, cleaning it of Sienna's blood._

 _"_ _This was my business, not yours." Adam stated._

 _"_ _It's our business now, and I don't appreciate you withholding things like that." Hazel pointed out._

 _"_ _Your master was concerned with Sienna's willingness to cooperate. Now she doesn't have to be." Adam replied._

 _"_ _Nobody needed to die today." Hazel stated, solemnly._

 _He then left the room as Adam sat down on the throne._

 _"_ _I… disagree." Adam replied in a chilling voice._

 _Meanwhile…._

 _Sienna woke up just barely alive in a safe house in Mistral with Nova and the other loyal white fang troops._

 _"_ _Is this heaven?" She asked._

 _"_ _No, I just managed to save you using my 'semblance'. Adam staged a coup in the white Fang, tried to kill you and is now the leader of the group. He's trying to transform it. I know you're not really for working with Salem but I'm here to help make sure there's still allies for her and for now, I suggest you send a message to the past white fang leader for help" Nova explained._

 _"_ _Ghira. He might be able to help but Adam must not know I'm still alive" Sienna stated._

 _"_ _Where is this Ghira?" Nova asked._

 _"_ _Menagerie. Why?" Sienna replied._

 _"_ _Because we're going to need to move location" Nova stated._

 _"_ _Wait, do you have anyone that can help you?" Sienna asked._

 _"_ _I used too much aura for my semblance when I was trying to save your life. Don't worry, I have back-up. Ebony Sun and Nuri can cover for me" Nova replied while huffing._

 _Ebony had blue eyes, black hair and a pair of black cat ears with a solider grey Grimm mask that was rounded, covering the wearer's cheeks and featuring a pair of fang-like points around the mouth area wearing a black lace dress and black and yellow boots. Her symbol was a cat and her semblance was good luck which was linked to illusions that gave her abilities of the person she was impersonating until her aura wears out._

 _Nuri was a young faunus boy with golden-brown eyes, brown bear ears as his faunus trait and short brown hair wearing a green cloak and a white mask that had a bear likeness to it. His weapon was a wooden designed staff that used dust in its compartments which a special feature to it and his symbol was a flame._

 _Nuri and Ebony protected Nova as they helped the other loyal white fang members move both Nova and Sienna to a train nearby to travel to the docks that lead to Menagerie._

 _Nuri was able to change their appearances to avoid being caught as they were travelling through his semblance._

 _The next day….._

In Menagerie(which may be a month before the Mistral part), the Belladonnas and Sun Wukong hold a press conference to the rest of the Faunus populace.

Ghira opened the doors as his family and Sun stepped out of the home to greet the crowd gathering outside. Some people in the crowd were wearing press badges and holding scrolls up to record the event.

Others in attendance include Corsac and Fennec Albain, who were bowing their heads, as well as Saber Rodentia and other Menagerie Guards. Ghira stepped up to the podium and raised his hand to quiet the crowd down.

"Thank you all for assembling here. I wanted to take time to address some of the rumours that have been circulating around our island. I believe that it is important for the people of this territory to understand the truth. No matter how you feel about the human race, I think we can all agree that the event now known as the Fall of Beacon was a tragedy. A tragedy that will set both man and Faunus-kind back. While the main aggressor is still unknown, we do have official confirmation that Adam Taurus... (he glared at the Albains) ... the leader of a powerful splinter group working inside the White Fang, was partially responsible for these attacks. His actions not only tarnished the reputation of an organization originally created to bring peace and equality to all, but to our entire race. With each day that this man remains unpunished, it becomes increasingly difficult to condemn those that look down upon us." Ghira began.

The crowd started murmuring among themselves. Ghira raised his hand again to quiet the crowd down.

"Recently, a spy from the same splinter group set their sights on this very home. My own daughter, Blake, and her friend did their very best to apprehend this individual. While they were unsuccessful after being physically assaulted and seriously injured, they were successful in obtaining the assailant's Scroll. (Ghira took out the Scroll from inside his coat) With this, we have been able to ascertain that Adam Taurus has plans to overthrow the current leader of the White Fang, Sienna Khan, and take over the reins himself." He continued.

At this, the crowd started to loudly murmur in concern.

"His radical plans do not stop there, the documents on this scroll proclaim his next target to be Haven Academy and its attached CCT Tower. Their plan is to strike on the last full moon before the beginning of the Fall semester, roughly two months from today. I have sent my swiftest messenger to the government of Mistral, but I believe we have a greater responsibility. My relationship with the White Fang has been... an interesting one. Years ago, I led the organization to help try and create a world where I, and every Faunus who wished, could walk alongside the human race. And while I believe we made great strides toward this goal, it was made clear to me that the people both in and out of the White Fang wanted faster results. So I stepped down, and Sienna Khan was appointed as my successor. It's true that I do not fully condone many of her methods. What I do condone is what Sienna fights for: the idea that the Faunus and humans are, and should be, equal. Adam Taurus does not seem to have that goal in mind. What he has done benefits no one but himself. I think it's time that the Faunus showed the world that we are equals! Time that we snuff out this splinter group, and restore the White Fang to what it once was!" Ghira cried.

The crowd began to cheer at this remark.

"To do this, I think the answer is clear, we must go to Haven and protect it at all costs!" Ghira stated.

At this, the crowd suddenly stopped cheering, showing some hesitance. Ghira saw this and cleared his throat.

"Before we proceed any further, I'd like to invite my daughter to come and share her story. Not only as a former member of the White Fang, but also as a survivor of the Fall of Beacon." Ghira announced.

Blake stepped up to the podium and faced her father.

"You can do this." Ghira said with reassurance.

Suddenly, a familiar voice yelled out from the crowd:

"TRAITORS!" Ilia cried.

She uncloaked herself, wearing her Grimm mask and clenching her teeth angrily. Blake had a surprised look before glaring back at her. Sun glared at her intensely.

"Ilia..." Sun stated, bitterly.

"Cowards... After everything the humans have done to us, everything they've put us through, you're asking us to help them?!" Ilia cried.

"I know we haven't been treated fairly..." Ghira began.

"Where was their help when the Dust companies treated our people like slaves?! Where was their help when Kingdoms hunted Faunus just for being who they are?! Where was my help when my parents were killed in a Dust mine?! WHERE?!" Ilia demanded.

"Young lady, progress takes patience and cooperation!" Ghira stated.

"The Belladonnas are the worse kind of Faunus! They want us to work with the same people that are trying to hold us down! If you truly, truly want to help your people... (as she spoke, Sun sneaked through the crowd behind her) ... now is the time to support Adam, not the Belladonnas! He will bring about the future that you deserve. And if you are unwilling to fight, know that the White Fang will do it for you!" Ilia exclaimed.

"SHUT UP!" Sun cried.

He then leapt out of the crowd toward Ilia from behind, but she used her weapon to get out of the way and fled. When Sun landed, he looked around to see where she had gone, but she was no longer in his line of sight.

"After her!" the guard known as Saber Rodentia.

Saber was the faunus guard with blue eyes and a scar across the right side of his face.

Saber and the rest of the Menagerie guards moved to chase down Ilia, while Corsac and Fennec exchanged evil smiles.

Blake and Ghira angrily glared from the stage, while Kali had a worried look on her face.

No one there was aware that Sienna and Nova were traveling with the loyal white fang members to their location due to the towers being down.

Back in Mistral ….

Oscar Pine was sitting on a red armchair, nervously looking at the members of Team RNJR as they fawned over him.

"Did he age backwards?" Nora asked.

"He's possessed!" Jaune cried.

Ren: "Or reincarnated!" Ren added.

"How very…peculiar" I stated.

"Oh! Isn't it weird?" Ruby asked.

"It is very weird, yes." Oscar replied.

"Okay, okay. (he emerged from the kitchen holding a cup in his hand) Let's all just take a second and remember that this is very overwhelming for everyone." Qrow pointed out.

Team RNJR and I all stepped back together and nervously chuckled.

"Thanks." Oscar said to Qrow with a smile.

Qrow then took a seat on the couch next to Oscar. Ruby and Nora took a seat on the couch perpendicular to Qrow's, while Jaune and Ren remained standing. I sat beside Nora, feeling excited about what would happen next.

Oscar then shared a brief look with Ruby, who giggled, causing Oscar to blush.

"Ah, sorry! (he briefly looks away) It's just I've never really met Huntsmen and Huntresses before." Oscar confessed with embarrassment.

"Well, uh... we've never met a person with two souls! So, first times all around." Ruby added with a genuine smile.

Oscar smiled and chuckled at Ruby, before Qrow cleared his throat.

"Not to break up the whole 'getting-to-know-you' game, but we need to have a talk. Mind showing us your little parlour trick, kid?" Qrow asked.

"(groans) Yeah, okay. Just so you know, I'll still be here." Oscar reassured them.

The members of Team RNJR looked at him in confusion. Oscar then lowered his head and closed his eyes.

Suddenly, a green and white aura shone from his body for a moment, Oscar opened up his eyes, which were now glowing, and he smiles. When he spoke, we all heard a familiar voice overlapping with a bunch of other voices, including Oscar's.

"It is so very good to see you again, students." Ozpin smiled with his overlapping voice.

All of Team RNJR had brief looks of confusion.

"Wait, what just happened?" Jaune asked, in confusion.

"Holy Macaroni! Ozpin, you're back. Alleluia!" I cried.

"Sssh! We don't want to alert everyone about this" Qrow whispered, cautiously.

"Professor... Ozpin?" Ren asked.

"Correct. And though I may be the one speaking, Oscar is still present mentally. He's merely handed over the control, so to speak." Ozpin replied as he spoke in Oscar's voice once the overlapping had eased down a bit.

 ** _Oscar: (mentally) Just don't make us do anything embarrassing... _**

"I'm afraid this all must be very perplexing." Ozpin began.

"And alarming, and bizarre, and just really kind of hard to believe overall!" Nora exclaimed.

"(chuckling) It's good to see you children still have your sense of humour. I know you've all been through tremendous hardship already. I'm sorry." Ozpin stated, solemnly.

"I mean, it's not your fault." Ruby said, gently.

"It's all my fault. I told you once that I made more mistakes than any man, woman, and child on this planet, and I wasn't exaggerating. I'm... cursed. For thousands of years, I've walked the surface of Remnant, living, dying, and reincarnating in the body of a like-minded soul. The Professor Ozpin you all met was not my first form, and clearly wasn't my last. It's... an extraordinarily strenuous process on everyone involved." Ozpin replied, sadly.

"So, who… what… are you?" Jaune asked.

"I am the combination of countless men who've spent their lives trying to protect the people of Remnant. (Qrow walked back into the common room and handed him a cup of tea) With every rebirth, my soul is eventually merged with another and I am changed, but my memories stay with me. This curse was bestowed upon me by the gods because I failed to stop Salem in the past. But we must stop her now." Ozpin explained.

"And how do we do that?" Ruby asked.

"We start… by ensuring the safety of the Relic of Knowledge." Ozpin stated.

"Ozpin, why weren't you able to stop Salem the first time and can you help my friends stay hidden from Salem's henchmen? I can't explain in too much detail" I paused to look at Ruby, who was mystified by me.

"But, we're here to help Team RNJR. However, we can only stay here for a certain length of time before we're called away for another mission. Don't worry, my friends are trustworthy" I added.

"Hmmm….Well, I wasn't able to stop Salem the first time because she caught me by surprise. She used our emotional bond against me after giving the maidens their powers….. The Gods of light and dark were not happy about this and cursed me to live life over and over through bonding with people that had a similar mind set. You're probably wondering who can before me, That's a long story. I can't afford to tell THAT tale right now, I wish to tell you my plan for you six soon enough" Ozpin replied.

"As for your friends….." He began as he thought hard about a plan.

"This is perfect! We were stuck at a dead end, but now, we can just take little cute boy Ozpin to Lionheart and have him set things straight!" Nora cried, interrupting his trail of thought.

"Please don't call me that." Ozpin sighed.

"We're not sure that's the best idea." Qrow added.

Nora groaned and went back to sit down next to Ruby, Ren and I.

"But I thought the headmasters all took their orders from you." Ren pointed out, in confusion.

"That was the intention. Four lieutenants I can trust, especially during times of reincarnation. But Qrow told me about your meeting with Leonardo. (he gets up and walks towards a painting of Mistral) He isn't just behaving irrationally, he's disobeying specific instructions I had left him. Something's wrong. I don't want to jump to conclusions, but I don't want to rule out any possibilities, either. No one outside of this room knows that I've paired with Oscar, and I think it may be best to keep it that way." Ozpin replied.

I felt very unease as Ozpin spoke about Lionheart since my friends and I were aware that he was sort of unwillingly helping Salem undercover.

"Play things close to the chest until we get a better hand." Qrow added.

"Precisely. Now, we have two steps ahead of us. (he turned around to face the rest of the group) The first is enlisting the aid of more Huntsmen." Ozpin stated.

"But the Mistral council—" Ren began.

"Doesn't own every Huntsman in the Kingdom, and I've been here enough times to know where we can find some more." Qrow finished.

"So long as they're trustworthy." Ozpin added.

"You can trust them to put up a good fight. I'll throw together a list tonight." Qrow promised.

Qrow put his foot on the table, but his Semblance caused one of the legs to break and spilt his cup of tea.

"Good luck with that." Nora remarked.

Qrow groaned as he cleaned up his mess.

"After that, we can move on to step two." Ozpin stated.

"What's step two?" Nora asked.

Suddenly, Ozpin got out his cane in hand.

"Getting you four into fighting shape" Ozpin stated.

Team RNJR once again exchange looks of confusion.

"But, uh, we already know how to fight." Ruby pointed out, all confused.

"(points to Ruby) You can only fight so long as you have Crescent Rose, but you're still lacking in hand-to-hand combat." Ozpin began.

"Well, uh, yeah." Ruby replied.

"(pointing to Jaune) Mr. Arc, I'm glad to hear you've improved, but sorry to say, you've yet to unlock your Semblance. All of you still have a-ways to go before you're ready to pose any real threat against Salem and her forces. And though Oscar can give me temporary control, he'll need to strengthen his body and his Aura." Ozpin addressed them.

Oscar: (mentally) Wait, what?

"He'll inherit my muscle memory in time, but practice will expedite the process. As for you, newcomer Grace; We'll have to figure out what your semblance is and your weapon before attempting to train you as well" Ozpin added.

"I'm ok really" I said, nervously.

"Everyone needs to improve their skills for future fights, young lady" Ozpin pointed out.

"I understand" I smiled.

I turned away from them as I called my friends on my scroll.

"Guys, Qrow is going to help you stay out of sight from Salem's forces and hopefully move you to a place that's safer to stay at" I reported.

"That's great news, Grace. Oh, Patch is currently with us. Apparently, there's someone in the White Fang who can help us keep an eye on Salem's force and has a very small connection to Blake" Sky replied.

"Grace, are you willing to see Raven with me?" Bernice asked.

"You go first and I'll call you when I want to go see her ok?" I whispered.

"Good luck" she replied.

"Ok, keep me posted. Grace out" I said as the short-distance call ended.

 _I might have to tell Ozpin why we have to avoid Salem's allies_ I thought.

"But if Qrow's out looking for Huntsmen, then who's going to teach us?" Ruby asked.

Ozpin then propelled himself into the air with his cane, spinning counterclockwise into a barrel roll before landing onto the seat of the armchair, twirling his cane.

"Well, I believe I was the headmaster of Beacon Academy." Ozpin stated.

All of Team RNJR had various looks of shock or disbelief on their faces.

"Grace, is it? I will make sure Qrow is able to help your friends stay out of sight from Salem's forces at all costs once he finds trustworthy huntsmen to help us" Ozpin promised.

"We have approximately one month before classes resume at Haven. If Salem were to plan an attack, it would make sense that it would occur prior to students' return. It's not much time, but it's better than nothing. (he stopped twirling his cane) Just don't expect me to go easy on you." he added.

Suddenly, he glowed green and white again, switching control back to Oscar. He had a hard time keeping his balance on the armchair before falling backwards.

"(groans) You've gotta be kidding me." Oscar complained.

Qrow and Team RNJR looked on with various shocked expressions again.

Weiss Schnee woke up in a cage in the Branwen Tribe's camp at night, where a woman named Vernal told her that the bandits planned to ransom her back to Atlas.

Vernal appeared to be a young woman with peach-coloured skin and short brown hair. She has moderately thin arms with a tattoo on her left arm. She wears a brown vest over a torn white shirt, with a collar that appears to spike up behind her neck. Vernal wears maroon-coloured pants with the right side rolled up halfway. She also wears dark brown knee guards that go down to her brown boots.

Vernal was the current Spring maiden and probably the right-hand man for Raven.

Weiss rebuffed that her older sister Winter Schnee would come to her rescue, but Vernal stated that she was not in Mistral anymore as per Ironwood's orders to return to Atlas as the kingdom closes its borders.

Later on, when the bandits were asleep, Weiss summoned a small version of the Armoured Knight to help free her.

At the same time...

Cinder's group were making their way to Raven's tribe at roughly the same time as Yang was travelling.

So Weiss and Yang were in for a surprise...

 _-To be continued-_

 ** _So, there will be training, Raven interaction and foreshadowing. Yes, Neo will appear again but she won't be arriving in Haven just yet. So yeah, this is where the test truly begins; Not just because there's training involved but because there's a stressful time limit to all of this and the fact that if the Knights are seen about anyone else other than Lionheart...the timeline of Remnant could be at stake! (Yes I have seen Chapter 4 but I may have to combine two 'episodes' each time for now on)_**

 ** _I hope you liked the surprise I did with Sienna._**

 ** _More surprises are on the way, see you next year! (I have to go on a very long hiatus so I can structure the rest of volume 5 to fit the test element of my story you see and I'm very busy)_**

 ** _See you soon!_**

 ** _Grace, out!_**

 ** _PS: What do you think the OC Knights' semblances should be in the world of remnant?_**


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4- Phase 1, hard work and Raven Trouble (Lighting the fire + a Necessary Sacrifice)

-A few days had past for Yang-

The Shady Man brought Yang Xiao Long into the forest, his intention was an ambush by a small assembly of bandits from the Branwen Tribe, but Yang easily defeated them and forced them to take her to Raven.

At around sunset, Yang finally entered the camp, escorted by a few bruised bandits who she had roughed up earlier and Raven Branwen congratulated her.

She offered answers and a special meal, but Yang instead stated that she is there to get her mother to use her Semblance to create a portal that will bring her to Qrow Branwen and therefore Ruby.

Raven scoffs and attempts to send her away, but Yang is determined enough to fight. Weiss Schnee saw her former teammate when a tent crashed and she gave up trying to escape with subtlety. Weiss made the Arma Gigas break her cage and she joins Yang in the centre of the fight.

At Raven's request, Vernal caused lightning to strike in front of the Arma Gigas before a fight could break out. Raven called a halt, warning everyone they will attract Grimm if they don't stop.

"You two. In my tent. Now." Raven ordered, sternly.

"Why?" Yang asked.

"If you're really going after your sister, then you need to know the truth." Raven stated.

Raven entered her tent and the bandits went back to their own businesses. Weiss placed her hand on her chest in relief.

"Sorry about-" Yang began.

Suddenly, Weiss dropped Myrtenaster and strongly hugged Yang.

"I missed you so much." Weiss confessed in an emotional voice.

"I've missed you, too." Yang replied as she felt very happy to see her old friend again.

Yang put her hand on the back of Weiss' head and hugged back as her summon disappeared. The two girls remained embraced for a while before they headed into Raven's tent.

Then Bernice teleported via a green portal to the camp.

"I'm here to see Raven, I'm a acquaintance of Yang and her team mates" Bernice announced.

"Fine, you can see her as well" Vernal relented.

In the white fang place that Adam was in

The white fang soldiers who had taken Sienna away to be buried, had a double of Sienna to be used as martyr for the Faunus.

Adam, the Albain twins, Ilia and the soldiers that were loyal to Adam were unaware that the real Sienna was still alive.

Although, Salem wasn't going to be very happy with Hazel's next report on the progress.

-later the next day/over a couple of days for Team RNJR (I think)-

Around afternoon time…

Oscar Pine and Ruby Rose were training hand to hand combat whilst Jaune Arc, Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren are looking on.

"Man, Oz wasn't kidding. Oscar's picking up on this stuff fast." Jaune observed.

Oscar hit Ruby straight in her face. Ruby recoiled from the blow and looked visibly angry.

"Oh my gosh. I'm so sorry!" Oscar exclaimed.

Ruby hit Oscar back and he landed a few feet away on ground as Jaune and Nora winced.

"Ha! Yes! I did it! (her brief moment of cheering was replaced with concern) Oscar?" Ruby asked as she checked behind her.

 _Ozpin: (mentally) You forgot to engage your Aura, again._

"Why didn't you tell me?" Oscar asked, with slight annoyance.

 _Ozpin: (mentally) Because this method makes you less likely to forget._

Oscar groaned and got to his feet.

 _Ozpin: (mentally) Mind if I give it a shot?_

Oscar stiffened briefly while his eyes glowed in a yellow light.

"Not bad, Miss Rose. But Oscar doesn't have the years of training that you do. Or I do." Ozpin stated.

Oscar's body shimmers green as Ozpin engages their Aura. Jaune and Nora realize what Ruby is in for. Oscar determinedly approaches Ruby.

"Oh, ha, well, maybe we should uh... take a break." Ruby suggested, nervously.

Ozpin attacked Ruby with a few punches aimed at her head, forcing her onto the defensive until he landed a blow to her face which knocked her back several feet. Ozpin closed the gap with a leap and kicked her in the face. Ruby leapt at Ozpin to throw a left cross which Ozpin evaded by ducking and retaliated with a headbutt from below.

"Ouch." Nora winced.

"The next time you want to throw a left cross, remember to push off with the appropriate foot. And as always, do be aware of any openings." Ozpin advised, cautiously.

"Gooooot it." Ruby said in a strained voice as she sat up.

Ozpin relinquished his control and Oscar fell to the ground, panting.

"Oh! Hey. Are you okay?" Ruby asked, with concern.

"How is this so exhausting?" Oscar asked while in pain.

"Your body isn't used to this kind of training, not to mention generating a defensive Aura on your own. It takes intense concentration at first, but in time it will become second nature, allowing you to deflect attacks and gradually heal your wounds. After that, you can begin focusing on your Semblance, whatever that may be." Ren replied.

"Semblance?" Oscar asked.

"You know! Like your very own superpower! Everybody's got one. It's just a matter of finding it and mastering it. Ruby moves super-fast, Electricity makes me stronger, Ren can mask emotions, and Jaune... can, uh, um. Hmm." Nora began as she trailed off when mentioning Jaune.

"I can't do anyth—" Jaune began.

"Jaune's like you!" Ruby interjected as she took Oscar by the hand and led him over to Jaune.

"He hasn't found his Semblance yet, but we all know he will. And you will, too. We all just have to try and help each other get stronger." Ruby stated, happily.

"Cool." Oscar said, feeling reassured.

"A common philosophy is that a warrior's Semblance is a part of who they are. Some say your personality and character can define your Semblance while some claim that it is the other way around. Of course, there are still many who don't see a connection at all." Ren explained.

"It's hard to know when you know sometimes. Ren's Semblance was unlocked from intense stress." Nora began.

"And mine kicked in during training one day." Ruby added.

"And what about you?" Oscar asked as he turned to Nora.

"Oh. Struck by lightning. Didn't die. Craaaazy Thursday." Nora replied, in a bubbly tone as if it was a regular occurrence.

"I can totally see that working for you, Nora!" I laughed.

"But, I haven't been here long and I'm unsure of what my semblance and my friends' semblance would be" I added, nervously.

"It takes time, Grace. Plus, you told us you apparently have energy abilities where you come from. Your semblance could be similar to Velvet's. Her one involves mimicking other people's fighting styles after she has taken a picture of each person's weapon and like we just mentioned it can unlock at unexpected times" Ren replied with a soft smile as he placed his left hand on my right shoulder to comfort me.

"Thanks, Ren. You can do back to Nora now" I reassured him as I noticed Nora was putting on a pouting face in a comedic way to lure Ren into her arms.

Ren chuckled.

"Yeah, I will" Ren smiled back and then winked.

"I just don't understand what's wrong with me. I train. I meditate." Jaune stated with disappointment.

Oscar's eyes glowed momentarily as Ozpin took control of his body again.

"Don't worry, Mr. Arc. Your journey is far from over. And the same might be said for all of you. Unlocking your Semblance isn't the end. It can still grow and evolve. Providing you're willing to put in the work, who knows what could happen." Ozpin reassured Jaune.

"Then let's get back to it." Ruby stated with a smile.

"Ozpin, is it ok if I spar with you after Ruby?" I asked.

"Of course, Miss Quade" Ozpin replied.

Once they did an hour of sparring together, it was my turn.

I smiled as I faced Ozpin.

"Show me you best moves!" I challenged him.

He smiled back and charged forward.

I dodged when he tried to kick me and waited for an opening.

Then I aimed for his stomach and went for the punch when I saw an opening.

The impact sent him flying to the ground and his green aura flashed as Oscar regained control once more.

"Ow. Oz, maybe you should like me train with her next time?" Oscar moaned.

"Fine, you get the next try. Then we'll have a small break" Ozpin replied.

"So, do you want to fight me this time, Oscar?" I suggested.

Oscar got up, raised his arm in a fighting stance and tried to look confident.

"You've got this, Oscar" Ozpin encouraged him.

"I admire your commitment, kid" I grinned.

"Nora, are you filming this for my friends?"

I turned to look over at her.

Nora responded through a thumb's up signal.

"Let's go" Oscar said, with a flair of determination

We both charged, and it was a long sparring match.

Over time, Jaune joined in.

Through these training matches, we began to make progress together.

Then Ruby suggested to Ren to take a break to prepare dinner while Oscar moved into the dojo room near combat field.

Back in Haven Academy

Patch had a vision:

 _White fang soldiers were on Menagerie, two people were declared dead, Sun was visibly scarred for life and Green was crying in despair. Among all of it was Ilia, who looked ashamed for what she had done._

"Sky, Contact Mickey. I need to give him an important message!" Patch urged.

In almost an instant, Sky made the call and Patch told Mickey what he had seen.

"Alright, I'll send Green right away. Then I'll make sure he gets back up through Ebony Sun" Mickey stated.

"So Qrow is still busy looking for huntsmen and I just received a video of Grace training with Oscar, Ruby and Jaune" Kenny stated.

"Ah, sweet!" Everyone else cried.

"Remember, everyone: You MUST leave before the fall of Haven happens" Mickey reminded them as the line ended and they began to watch the video of my training that Nora sent them.

-In Mistral sometime in the evening a few weeks after Oscar started trainning-

Back in Mistral, Oscar was in a training room while wielding Ozpin's cane.

Ruby Rose praised Oscar Pine for getting better with his combat abilities. However, Oscar admitted to Ruby that he was scared of what would happen next, and confronted her how she can handle the current situation.

Ruby confided in him over the loss of her friends Penny Polendina and Pyrrha Nikos, admitting that she was scared too. Despite all odds, Ruby said that she had to keep moving forward, as it would be what Pyrrha and Penny would do if Ruby was the one to lose her life.

"C'mon, if we don't hurry, Nora's gonna eat everything. It wouldn't be the first time." Ruby pointed out, in a non-urgent fashion while putting a hand on Oscar's shoulder.

Ruby began to leave the room as Oscar lingered for a bit.

"Hey, Oscar? This isn't gonna be easy, but the fact that you're even trying says a lot about you. You're braver than you think." Ruby stated while smiling.

Ruby proceeded up the stairs while Oscar watched.

Ozpin: (mentally) She really is remarkable, isn't she?

"Yeah. She must've been one of the best Huntresses at Beacon, huh?" Oscar asked, in astonishment.

Ozpin: (chuckles) In some ways, yes. But in many others... no. She has her quirks, her faults, just like everyone else. But she also possesses something unquantifiable: a spark, that can inspire others even in the darkest of times.

"This must be really hard on her too." Oscar said, softly.

Ozpin: It most assuredly is.

-With Blake and Sun in Menagerie in the morning (sometime after Ghira's speech and Adam's coup was performed) –

Blake and Sun went around Kuo Kuana to gather people to help defend Haven Academy, but no one wanted to. After an unsuccessful morning, Blake and Sun had a drink together, where Blake decided to talk about Adam Taurus and Ilia Amitola to Sun:

"At first, I thought Adam was "justice", then I thought he was "passion". But over time, I realized I was wrong. He wasn't any of those things. He was "spite". Not "hatred", not "rage", "spite". He won't accept equality, only suffering for what he feels the world did to him, and his way of thinking is dangerously contagious. That's what worries me about Ilia. She's not like Adam, not yet at least, but I don't know how long that will last." Blake confessed, sadly.

"She was your friend, huh?" Sun asked.

"She was. Her chameleon traits meant she could pass as human. She could've lived a normal life if she wanted, but she didn't. I always admired that. She lost her family in a mining accident when she was young, then she joined the White Fang. Like me, she was more or less trained on the road alongside other Faunus. She learned to survive, to defend herself, but as people like Sienna and Adam started to gain a following, she became more dangerous. I guess I did too. My parents tried to get me to leave with them, but I refused. I had Adam and Ilia, after all." Blake replied, in a calm manner.

"You know we're going to have to face her eventually." Sun stated.

"I know." Blake replied, looking slightly conflicted.

"So, what are you going to do?" Sun asked.

"I'm going to try and help her the way you helped me." Blake replied, positively.

Sun was surprised by this.

"You showed me that sometimes you need to be there for a friend even when they don't want you to be. I was drowning in guilt and fear, I tried to push you away, but you didn't give up on me. And I can't give up on Ilia. It's about time I saved my friends for once." Blake added, with renewed hope.

Sun smiled.

At the same time….

Nova, Ebony Sun, Nuri and Sienna along with the loyal soldiers on Sienna's side arrived and went to a safe house to stay safe from Adam.

"Thank you for helping me, Nova, Ebony and Nuri and the rest of you. Can you do me a small favour and warn Ghira for me? Please, I can't do it myself, it's too risky for me to be out in the open" Sienna pleaded.

"Alright, Nuri and I will go" Nova volunteered.

"Good luck, I will protect Sienna in your absence" Ebony replied, while nodding respectfully.

"Hurry, we don't have a lot of time!" Sienna urged.

Nuri and Nova bowed and then travelled to Menagerie while disguised as civilians to avoid anyone else recognising them.

Sienna was worried about their safety, but Ebony placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled.

Sienna held her bagh nakhs tightly as she hoped the two of them would relay the message in time.

Bagh Nakh mean 'Tiger Claw' in Hindi and were claw-like weapons which were four or five curved blades with finger loops affixed to crossbars.

"Sienna, we'll get through this" Ebony reassured her.

Sienna nodded but then sighed.

 _I hope them reach Ghira in time_ she thought.

 _Meanwhile…._

A portal opened in Menagerie and a familiar person with green quilled hair and hedgehog ears and black eyes wearing a Japanese-styled outfit with different shades of green with a green katana sword on his belt appeared. It was Green in the form of a faunus to blend into the crowd.

"Ok, Mickey. Where are I meant to be going to guard them?" Green asked.

"They're in a mansion at the top end of the town" Mickey replied.

Green turned to see what was ahead and saw the layout of the town.

"Wow, this is going to be a tough job" Green realised with a tinge of worry.

"Remember, Green. Negative emotions can attract Grimm so be VERY careful when you're on bodyguard duty" Mickey warned.

"Understood. I'll let you know when my mission is complete" Green responded before the line was cut and Green was on his own.

-In a hidden White Fang base somewhere near or on Menagerie in the evening-

In an ominous looking room, a small device projecting a blue hologram with the text "MESSAGE END" deactivated. The room was candlelit, and there were White Fang banners hanging along the walls. Corsac and Fennec Albain stood in front of a painting.

"Your thoughts?" Fennec asked.

"Are of no significance. If this is how High Leader Taurus wishes to proceed, then we shall make it so." Corsac replied.

"Of course, brother. Still…" Fennec began, feeling unsure.

A knock on the door was heard behind them.

"Come in." Corsac requested.

Ilia Amitola entered the room.

"Sister Ilia, thank you for meeting with us." Fennec greeted her.

"How may I be of assistance?" Ilia asked as she knelt in front of them.

"Please, stand." Corsac ordered, politely.

Ilia obeyed and stood up.

"We have wonderful news." Corsac remarked.

"What is it?" Ilia asked.

"We finally received a message from the Mistral brotherhood: the operation was a success. Adam Taurus has claimed his place as the High Leader of the White Fang." Fennec replied.

"Good. And... Sienna?" Ilia asked.

"Buried… with honour. The other branches of the Fang have been given the story that was agreed upon." Corsac replied, very calmly, almost TOO calm.

"(sighs) A necessary sacrifice. We won't forget everything she did for us." Ilia stated.

"Indeed." Fennec agreed.

"Your maturity and understanding in regards to this matter is appreciated, and it is why we've summoned you here this evening." Corsac explained.

"The White Fang is experiencing… a transitional period." Fennec began.

"Growth requires change." Corsac added.

"And change can be painful." Fennec finished.

"If it's for the betterment of the Faunus, then… it's a pain we can endure. What's our next mission?" Ilia asked.

"Containment. With the CCT towers still inoperable, we have the luxury of control over the flow of information." Corsac replied.

"News of Adam's ascension has yet to reach Menagerie, but when it does, the citizens of Kuo Kuana will undoubtedly react poorly now that the chieftain has spoken out against us." Fennec pointed out.

"(sighs) It's my fault the Belladonnas had any ground to stand on." Ilia growled.

"Do not concern yourself with past failures, Ilia. Focus on the future. We have an opportunity for redemption." Corsac reassured her.

"What do you need me to do?" Ilia asked.

"The Belladonnas are the only remaining threat to Adam's assault on Haven Academy." Fennec began.

"And so, they must be silenced…" Corsac added, matter-of-factually.

"(visibly taken aback) S-silenced?" Ilia asked, in shock.

"Like Sienna. They stand in the way of true progress for our people." Corsac said, carefully.

"We would never put such a burden on you alone, of course. Your brothers and sisters will be at your side, but your relationship with their daughter makes you an intrical part of this operation." Fennec added.

"Blake?" Ilia asked.

"We know how close you are with young Blake. Rest assured, High Leader Taurus has requested she be taken alive, but we cannot risk having her present to defend her family." Corsac explained.

"But, the people of Menagerie—" Ilia began.

"Will come to understand what happens to those who speak out against the White Fang." Corsac interrupted her.

"And will be left without a leader until our victory is complete." Fennec added.

Corsac placed a hand on Ilia's shoulder.

"A necessary sacrifice, Sister Ilia." Corsac stated.

Ilia briefly thought on this, before leaving the room.

"She's right to worry about the citizens. It's possible they may come to see Ghira as a martyr." Fennec observed.

"It is a risk we must take for our High Leader." Corsac stated.

Corsac reactivated the device from earlier, showing a blue life-sized hologram of Adam and his message.

 _"_ _I will not allow them to ruin this! The Belladonna name has brought me nothing but grief! (visibly upset, Adam brings his hand to face to compose himself) You've done well in finding the deserter. Bring her to me, alive. But not before you've slaughtered her family. I have a promise to keep." Adam ordered, acting not quite like his 'normal' psycho self._

The hologram deactivated.

"He seems… unwell." Fennec remarked.

"He carries with him a tremendous burden." Corsac pointed out.

"Are we sure he is the one to lead us?" Fennec asked.

"For now. We must do what is best for the Faunus." Corsac replied.

Fennec sighed

A knock at the door was heard again.

"Yes?" Corsac asked.

A Faunus with bat wings entered the room.

"Brother Yuma. Did you see to Ghira's messenger?" Corsac asked.

"He rests beneath the waves… along with his warning." Yuma replied.

"Then all is well." Corsac stated.

The Albains gave ominous smiles.

XXXX

"Haven is going to fall early?!" a voice cried.

"It's for the benefit of the faunus" was echoed.

"RUBY!" Yang's voice yelled.

"I failed. didn't I?" a different voice asked.

"That's not for me to decide" Corsac replied.

 **To be continued in the summer time...**

 **Don't worry everyone, i'll be sure to do my own big twist soon. :D**

 **4 weeks till I go on my Christmas break. I hope to do a few more chapters then before I stop and wait for volume 5 to be completed online. After all there are 14 episodes and I won't be covering everything in this story ;)**

 **See ya soon!**

 **(Yes, i'm going to describer what everyone looks like in Remant as well. I haven't forgotten that detail)**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5- the heat is on, the start of a secret mission, semblance practise with rest and relaxation (1.5)

 **The last part is my own addition to it so if Ghira doesn't end up fighting in the show, I will keep my scene no matter what. Yes, I'll be doing scenes that don't occur in the show for a reason.**

 **If you get the RWBY Chibi reference in this chapter, you get a cookie! (You get a recommendation to buy RWBY merch everywhere XD)**

In Mistral, Qrow Branwen went around the city looking for Huntsmen to help him out in recovering the Spring Maiden and protecting the Relic of Knowledge. However, none of the Huntsmen he had listed, nor any other Huntsmen in the Kingdom, were available.

He also realised the huntstress known as Heather was 'missing in Action'.

At the park, he looked up at the Mistral Bounty mission boards, listed as the following:

LUCERO, FLANN - MISSION TYPE: VILLAGE SECURITY

MISSION STATUS: IN PROGRESS 8 WEEKS AGO

DURHAM, AZURA - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY

MISSION STATUS: IN PROGRESS 6 WEEKS AGO

COWAN, DOVE - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY

MISSION STATUS: TERMINATED 1 WEEK AGO

CHOI, LALI - MISSION TYPE: BOUNTY

MISSION STATUS: ON HOLD 7 WEEKS AGO

LIN, FUSCHIA - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND RESCUE

MISSION STATUS: TERMINATED 6 DAYS AGO

SILVER, STARK - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY

MISSION STATUS: IN PROGRESS 1 WEEK AGO

HAWKINS, JAY - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY

MISSION STATUS: IN PROGRESS 3 WEEKS AGO

HAWTHORNE, LUCERO - MISSION TYPE: BOUNTY

MISSION STATUS: TERMINATED 4 DAYS AGO

ANDREWS, RORY - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY

MISSION STATUS: ON HOLD 9 WEEKS AGO

CASTILLO, AURORA - MISSION TYPE: VILLAGE SECURITY

MISSION STATUS: IN PROGRESS 8 WEEKS AGO

HUGHES, DAISY - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND RESCUE

MISSION STATUS: ON HOLD 4 WEEKS AGO

LEVINE, MAE - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY

MISSION STATUS: TERMINATED 3 DAYS AGO

FOREST, WYATT - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY

MISSION STATUS: ON HOLD 5 WEEKS AGO

PAGE, ORION - MISSION TYPE:

MISSION STATUS:

RIVERA, STAR - MISSION TYPE: BOUNTY

MISSION STATUS: TERMINATED 4 DAYS AGO

KRATZ, CYAN - MISSION TYPE: BOUNTY

MISSION STATUS: ON HOLD 8 WEEKS AGO

HYACINTH, ZACH - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY

MISSION STATUS: TERMINATED 2 DAYS AGO

NASH, INIGO - MISSION TYPE: VILLAGE SECURITY

MISSION STATUS: TERMINATED 5 DAYS AGO

TEALE, CAROLINE - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY

MISSION STATUS: ON HOLD 10 WEEKS AGO

LI, MIDORI - MISSION TYPE: BOUNTY

MISSION STATUS: ON HOLD 2 DAYS AGO

THURMON, ONYX - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND RESCUE

MISSION STATUS: ON HOLD 4 WEEKS AGO

VARGA, VIOLA - MISSION TYPE: VILLAGE SECURITY

MISSION STATUS: ON HOLD 2 WEEKS AGO

CARRILLO, NOVA - MISSION TYPE: BOUNTY

MISSION STATUS: ON HOLD 5 WEEKS AGO

HALE, VENUS - MISSION TYPE:

MISSION STATUS:

HUNT, TERRA - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY

MISSION STATUS: TERMINATED 2 DAYS AGO

ERDOS, MAUVE - MISSION TYPE: BOUNTY

MISSION STATUS: TERMINATED 5 DAYS AGO

BASHIR, MAZA - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY

MISSION STATUS: ON HOLD 8 WEEKS AGO

RHODES, CASCADE - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY

MISSION STATUS: ON HOLD 2 WEEKS AGO

HOPKINS, CLOVER - MISSION TYPE:

MISSION STATUS:

LARSEN, MAPLE - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY

MISSION STATUS: ON HOLD 9 WEEKS AGO

YU, LOTUS - MISSION TYPE:

MISSION STATUS:

LYNCH, ASH - MISSION TYPE:

MISSION STATUS:

After looking at the boards, Qrow crossed off the following names on his Scroll:

FORHAN, ROUX

DE SENA, SLATE

CHOI, LALI

He then checked for more names on the mission board one last time:

UMBRA, AYRESS - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND RESCUE

MISSION STATUS: TERMINATED 1 WEEK AGO

GRIFFIN, CARMINA - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND RESCUE

MISSION STATUS: IN PROGRESS 8 WEEKS AGO

WAN, SHIRO - MISSION TYPE: SEARCH AND DESTROY

MISSION STATUS: IN PROGRESS 5 WEEKS AGO

Qrow sighed and took a seat on a nearby bench, realizing that all of his contacts, let alone many others on the mission board, were nowhere to be found.

Qrow went back to the restaurant and paid the owner the Lied that Shiro owned him before leaving to return to the place everyone was staying at.

However, on the way there, he managed to sneak the other knights out of Haven academy and to their safe house where they got to start their training with Ozpin.

At the Branwen Tribe camp, Vernal poured cups of tea for Raven Branwen, Yang Xiao Long, Bernice and Weiss Schnee. They were all inside Raven's tent seated around a table while Vernal was standing up.

While Team RNJR were busy prepping the house, I sent a message to Bernice.

'Looks like she's ready to hear what Raven has to say too' She thought.

She created a green portal for me in the tent, so I could join them in their 'talk'.

Bernice then looked drained from creating two portals in a week.

"You can wait outside. Thank you." Raven addressed Vernal.

Vernal obliged and left the tent.

"Sorry to intrude but I'd like to hear this too, if that's ok?" I apologised, shakily.

"Alright, but only because you and this other girl know my daughter's friends" Raven relented.

"So, what's the "truth"?" Yang asked.

"(taking a sip from her cup) You know, it's better when it's hot." Raven stated.

"You know, you're really obnoxious." Weiss remarked.

"The truth is that "truth" is hard to come by. A story of victory for one person is a story of defeat for someone else. By now, your uncle has surely told Ruby and her friends plenty of stories" Raven replied, with a hint of mystery to her tone.

"Well, he's never given me a reason to doubt him before" Yang stated.

"That doesn't mean those reasons don't exist. (Yang glared at her) You know, you and your teammates might as well be the poster children for the Huntsman academies. Your motives vary, but you all enrolled to try and make the world a better place. It's adorable." Raven began in amusement.

Bernice and I sipped our tea while she spoke.

"It's what Huntsmen and Huntresses do." Yang pointed out.

"Not all of them. Some people are just in it for the money and the fame, but there's even more that are just looking to grow stronger. Your Uncle Qrow and I didn't attend Beacon to become Huntsmen, we did it to learn how to kill Huntsmen." Raven revealed, calmly.

Yang and Weiss gasped at this, exchanging a brief look with each other.

"Daddy and Uncle left that part out, hm? Aside from the Grimm, Huntsmen are the only ones capable of ruining our raids and hunting us down. Our tribe needed a counterforce. (takes another sip) And Qrow and I were the perfect age. The entrance exams were child's play compared to what we'd already been through. (standing up) We were good. So good, that we caught the attention of Beacon's very own headmaster, Professor Ozpin. Even after we were put on a team, I could tell he was keeping his eye on us. Back then, I thought it was because he knew, but it was Team STRQ that he was interested in." Raven explained in a serious voice.

"What do you mean by that?" Yang asked.

"Constant attention, extra training missions, turning a blind eye whenever we happened to break the rules and get into more trouble than we should've. Sound familiar?" Raven continued in a knowing voice.

Yang and Weiss shared another glance at each other.

"But they didn't really break the rules" I pointed out.

Weiss momentarily glared at me and I faltered.

Weiss gestured Yang to keep going.

"What's your point?" Yang pressed on.

"How much do you know about Professor Ozpin? About his past?" Raven questioned.

"He was… a prodigy. One of the youngest headmasters to be appointed to a school." Weiss replied.

I gasped softly.

"Because that's how he planned it. Because the man you know as Ozpin designed those schools and has followers inside every academy on Remnant that are loyal to him and no one else." Raven added.

"That doesn't make any sense! How could he have...? No. Why would someone even do that?" Yang exclaimed.

"Because old man Oz has a great and terrible secret. One that could spread fear across the world. One that he eventually entrusted to our team, and once I knew, there was no going back. I needed to know more, but with every new discovery I made, the more horrifying the world became." Raven continued with a hint of anguish in her voice.

"Okay, then tell us. What's the big secret? What's so crazy that the rest of us don't know?" Yang asked with intrigue and confusion.

"The Creatures of Grimm… have a master named Salem. She can't be stopped, she can't be reasoned with, and she will not rest until humanity crumbles at her feet." Raven confessed with certainty.

As she spoke, Weiss and Yang's eyes widened more and more.

I looked at Bernice.

Her head nodded slightly and that's when I knew she was thinking the same thing.

They sat in silence.

"What?" Weiss asked in confusion.

"I knew it! Salem is behind it all and bet she's on the dragon-shaped island!" I cried in victory.

Yang looked at me in bewilderment.

"You're aware of this 'Salem'?" Yang asked.

"It's a long story" I replied, while feeling flustered.

"You know, you two haven't even touched your tea." Raven pointed out.

Raven took another sip from her teacup, while Yang stood up.

Bernice and I quickly finished our tea while watching them.

"Why should we believe any of this?" Yang challenged her.

"Now you're catching on. So far, you've done nothing but accept what others tell you, (she put her cup down) but you need to question everything." Raven empathised to Yang.

The two stared at each other face to face, before Raven turned around.

"Otherwise you'll end up just as blind as Qrow… (Yang gritted her teeth, seething) … and your fool of a father." Raven stated in a serious but almost emotionless voice as if she wanted to 'spite' Yang.

A shot from Ember Celica was heard which destroyed the table and Yang's eyes had turned red.

"Don't you dare talk about my family like that!" Yang cried.

While Yang spoke, Weiss stared up at her wide-eyed and flinched when she raised her voice for emphasis.

Vernal drew her weapon at Yang.

Her weapon was a Deerhorn Knife which was a crescent shaped blade with a ring-shaped centre; The large outer blades have hooked points which point back toward the grip, four smaller blades located in pairs above and below the grip, wrapped in red cloth and curved to form part of the middle ring, a pair of rectangular gun barrels at the top of the ring and below the upper blade and a smaller, thinner ring connected by a pin to the forward-facing portion of the weapon which was within the main ring that presumably acts as a trigger for the barrels.

"You need to calm down." Vernal warned her.

"Raven, that was uncalled for" I said, timidly.

"It was necessary" Raven glared at me.

"Yang, please." Weiss pleaded as she held her hand.

"Listen to your friend, Yang. Your teammates never let you down before." Raven stated as if she knew what she was saying.

"You don't know the first thing about my teammates! About me! You were never there! You LEFT US! (her eyes then turned back to normal) Why?!" Yang finally asked as she hung her head in sadness.

"I know more than you realize. Not just about you, and not just what I've been told, but things I've seen with my own eyes. I know the Grimm have a leader, I know people who can come back from the dead, I know that magic is real, and I can prove it." Raven replied.

I looked at Bernice.

"She dismissed the question" I whispered while Bernice gave me the 'I know' look in reply.

Weiss stood up, while Raven continued to address her daughter:

"You said Tai told you all about my Semblance."

Vernal lowered her weapon while Raven headed toward the back exit of her tent.

"Well, I doubt he ever told you what Oz did to my brother and me." Raven finished.

Raven exited her tent. Yang and Weiss exchanged confused looks.

"Go see for yourself." Vernal offered as she too then left.

We all took her advice and left the tent.

However, Raven was nowhere to be seen.

"Mom?" Yang asked.

"Yang, are you okay?" Weiss asked with worry.

"I'll be fine once we can get her to take us to Ruby." Yang stated.

Weiss relented while Yang continued to look around.

"But if you don't keep your emotions in check even in an event like this, you could lose something else" I pointed out in a hushed voice.

"And we don't want any Grimm to appear" Bernice added.

Yang sighed.

"It's okay if... you're not okay." Weiss reassured her.

"You didn't believe what she said, right?" Yang asked with a unwavering look of concentration.

"I… of course not. Well, not all of it. It was crazy. We have Dust, Semblances... But, I mean, there's no such thing as magic." Weiss confessed.

"I believe her, also if magic isn't real, how come Ruby frozen that dragon and how do you explain Phyrra's DEATH?!" I stated.

"So, do I. You don't need get so annoyed if anyone does decide to believe your mother, Yang" Bernice pointed out, softly.

Yang thought about this as her eyes expressed her sorrow and confusion.

Just then, the two heard a raven caw. They watched it fly in front of them.

"A raven?" Weiss asked.

"I've… seen that bird before." Yang stated while staring hard enough.

"Maybe it belongs to your mom?" Weiss suggested.

"Oh my gosh, she's like…." I began.

"QROW!" Bernice finished.

We all continued to watch the raven fly in the dusk-coloured sky. It descended, flying and weaving between the trees, before shapeshifting into Raven herself. Raven landed back on the ground on her feet, while Yang and Weiss had shocked expressions as she stood back up.

"How… did you do that?" Yang asked.

"Well, I could explain it to you…" Raven began as she then drew her sword, slashing behind her, creating a portal with her Semblance.

"… or you could ask your uncle." She finished.

"You're letting us go?" Yang asked in shock.

"I'm giving you a choice. (she sheathed her sword) Stay here, with me, and I'll answer all your questions and more. We can have a fresh start. (Yang glared at her) Or… (she stepped to the side of her portal) you can go back to Qrow and join Ozpin's impossible war against Salem, and meet the same fate as so many others. But can you really go back to trusting someone that's kept so much from you?" Raven offered, in an almost deadpan 'natural' tone.

Weiss reacted timidly, while Yang just glared at her mother.

"All I care about is making sure my sister is safe." Yang stated, completely fixed on her goal.

"Ugh…" Raven said as she was very dissatisfied with her response.

"Raven, I believe you and so does my friend here. We're going to talk to Qrow and Ozpin and get to the bottom of this!" I promised.

"Good answer" Raven replied with a faint smile.

Yang and Weiss were onboard Bumblebee. However, before they could enter the portal, Raven decided to address her daughter one more time.

"Yang. If you side with your uncle, I may not be as kind the next time we meet…" Raven warned.

Weiss rolled her eyes and looked ahead.

"You weren't kind this time either." Yang pointed out, gravely.

Yang and Weiss proceeded through the portal on Bumblebee. The portal then disappeared.

"I know…" Raven said, softly in sadness.

"Why didn't you tell her how you really feel?" I asked.

"I don't know how to tell her. I've been a tribe leader for so long, I feel like I've forgotten how to express feels for others. Vernal is the closet person I have to a daughter here, I think you understand that" Raven replied.

"Ok, just be on your guard. Someone might try to take Vernal" I warned her.

"Don't worry, we can handle ourselves. I can let you get back to Qrow through my portal" Raven offered, in a genuine tone.

"Actually, yeah I think using your portal might be easier. I'm still adjusting to my semblance and its limit" Bernice replied, gratefully.

So, Raven opened another portal to Qrow for us to walk through.

"Thank you, Raven. Um, if anyone with green, grey, black and ashen-black hair turns up, please don't tell them we were here. They must not know we're in Remnant" I pleaded.

"I understand. Good luck" Raven replied as we went through the portal after Weiss and Yang.

Back in Mistral, Qrow was leaning against a stone railing.

"This isn't right. I get one or two of them, but… all of them?" Qrow asked in despair.

Qrow sighed and hung his head in disappointment. Suddenly, he heard the sound of Raven's portal behind him.

"Raven?" he asked.

The sound of a motorcycle was heard coming from the portal.

"Oh." Qrow said in surprise.

Back at the house Team RNJR was staying at, each of the members were helping prepare dinner: Ruby Rose and Lie Ren were cooking at the stove, Jaune Arc was setting up the table, and Nora Valkyrie was cutting carrots, occasionally eating slices.

"Alright, the first batch is just about done." Ren stated.

"Awesome! Now we just need Qrow and we'll be all set." Ruby exclaimed, excitedly.

"(still eating carrots) Do you really think he's gonna bring that many people? This is a lot of food." Nora asked as she ate another carrot slice.

"Uh, I don't know, but it sounds like we could use all the help we can get." Ruby replied.

"I'm back!" Qrow called out.

"Be right there!" Ruby yelled back.

"You're going to overcook that." Ren pointed out to Ruby.

"No, I'm not, shut up!" Ruby cried while concentrating.

"Hey, uh, Ruby?" Qrow asked.

"I'm coming!" Ruby cried.

Some smoke came from the pan Ruby was cooking with.

"Fine! You take over." Ruby groaned.

Ruby grabbed the tea tray and headed to the living room while Ren helped cook the pan.

"So, we didn't know how many people were coming, so we just cooked all of it." Ruby said while looking at the tea tray.

She looked up, and gasped as she dropped the tea tray and its contents as she stared in disbelief at the sight of not only Qrow, but of her older sister Yang, teammate Weiss and new friends Grace and Bernice (With the other Disney Knights in the background).

Yang approached her little sister.

"Yang, I… I'm so sorry! I- I should've stayed, and I should've talked to you more! I'd- I just… (tears started pouring from her eyes) I wasn't sure if you wanted me around and—" Ruby began as her voice cracked emotionally.

Suddenly, her big sister gave her a strong hug.

"I love you." Yang said as tears streamed from her eyes.

Ruby sobbed as she leaned into her sister's hug.

"I love you too." Ruby said, emotionally.

Jaune, Ren and Nora entered the room, smiling at the sight of the two sisters embracing each other. Qrow smiled as well. Oscar Pine then entered the room.

"Uh…" Oscar trailed off.

He looked up, seeing Ruby and Yang hugging, and smiled. Weiss smiled as she wiped a tear from her eye, before frowning while looking down.

"Weiss." Ruby said, gently.

Weiss looked up, and saw the two sisters open their arms up for her. She smiled and eagerly joined them in their hug. Everyone smiled as they watched three of the four Team RWBY members embraced each other.

After the hug, Ren offered to cook something for dinner: Noodles. This appeared to be something similar to 'Thanksgiving' in the world of Remnant.

The currently present members of Team RWBY and Team JNPR all had dinner together with the Disney Knights, sharing stories of what they have been up to since they all last saw each other. Weiss shared her story of what happened at the Schnee charity ball and scared Nora with her borbatusk summon.

As dinner was nearly finished, Yang showed off her robotic prosthetic arm to the rest of the group.

Ruby got all starry-eyed and quickly zoomed over to her sister's side to admire her arm.

"And it's just as strong?" Ruby asked while holding Yang's

"Hm, sure is." Yang said, confidently.

Suddenly, everyone heard a bang on the table. It was Nora, who had her arm out ready to arm wrestle.

"Wanna bet?" Nora challenged.

"Nora, please, now's not the time…" Weiss began in a sophisticated manner.

Despite Weiss' protest, Yang and Nora went ahead with the arm wrestle.

"Don't let her beat you! You can do it! Come on!" Jaune cried.

"You can do this! Show 'em what Team JNPR's made of!" Ren exclaimed.

"C'mon, sis! Aw, you can't lose to a girl in a skirt!" Ruby cheered.

Weiss looked on disdainfully.

"You wear a skirt, Ruby." Weiss pointed out.

"A battle skirt!" I cried as Ruby high-fived my right hand.

"Weiss, you're not cheering loud enough!" Ruby cried while shaking Weiss, who was still frowning.

"It definitely feels like the original, I'll give you that!" Nora remarked.

"Yep. But, it does have some new features!" Yang confessed, with determination as they both pushed their arms as hard as they could.

"Heh, oh yeah?" Nora challenged her.

A robotic sound was heard coming from Yang's arm, and suddenly Nora's was knocked back to the wall holding Yang's detached arm in her hand. Nora groaned in pain while the others looked on in concern, except for Yang, who had a smug grin on her face.

"Did she… win?" Jaune asked.

As Nora came to, she realized she was holding Yang's robotic arm, which caused her to scream and threw it away from her. Yang laughed while she caught her arm.

Later on, Jaune helped clean up the dishes.

"Gyah... We ate it all… (he picked up the pot holding all the bowls) Oh, I think I'm gonna be sick…" Jaune began as he gaged.

"Easy there, Vomit Boy, I believe in you." Yang joked.

"Oh, we're doing nickname throwbacks now. Wonderful." Jaune said, sarcastically as he walked away with the dishware in his hands.

Weiss giggled.

"I mean, the Ice Queen seems to like it." Nora remarked.

Weiss stopped giggling, and Ruby burst into laughter at Nora's remark. Weiss smiled nonetheless.

"(rolls her eyes) I so did not miss you people." Weiss said, playfully.

"(gasps) Oh my gosh, she really does like it! What went and warmed your heart while you were gone?" Nora asked in a teasing voice.

"Hey! You make it sound like I used to be terrible." Weiss stated.

"Nah. Just a lot to deal with it once." Yang admitted.

"Hmph!" Weiss retorted while looking a while in a not quite serious manner.

Yang playfully stuck her tongue out at Weiss.

"It's good to just take a break from the madness of reality" Kenny mused.

"Yeah, you guys are pretty fun to be around" Sky agreed.

"Hopefully Blake is safe" Patch said, worriedly.

Yang scratched her head.

"So, you're a cat faunus that can see the future?" Yang asked.

"Yes, I call it 'Future vision'. I hope everyone else will be able to unlock their semblance soon, everyone as in the Knights, Jaune and Oscar at this point. My 'future vision' is my semblance while I'm here" Patch remarked.

"Grace, weren't you going to confront Ozpin about something?" Leif asked.

"You know what I'll ask later" I said in embarrassment.

"It's been a long time. We've all grown in our own ways." Ren lamented.

"You really think so?" Ruby asked.

"Well, think back to when we were all at Beacon, would you say you ever did anything foolish or embarrassing? Or do you think you were perfect?" Ren asked, meaningfully.

"Oh gosh." Weiss realised as she buried her face in her hands again.

"I may have been a little too gung-ho from time to time." Yang admitted.

 _That's putting it mildly_ I thought reminiscing the events of 'Volume 1'.

"Heh, you? I tried to 1v1 a Nevermore on the second day of school." Ruby recollected.

"Yeah, well… don't even get me started." Jaune said as he walked back into the room with a bittersweet smile.

"Well that embarrassment - that desire to go back and tell yourself not to be so stupid - that just proves you're not the same person you used to be. You're smarter, you're kinder, you're stronger, and you're not done growing yet. None of us are." Ren reminisced.

There was silence for a brief moment.

"Yeah, turns out Ren gets real deep when he feels like talking." Ruby pointed out.

Everyone giggled.

"Well, hold on, I thought I was pretty great in school!" Nora exclaimed.

"Even at the dance? When you spilled punch all over yourself in front of—" Yang began with a cheesy smirk.

"Yes, especially the dance! Thank you, Yang!" Nora cried.

Yang covered her ears from Nora's yelling, who has her scroll out playing "Shine". Ruby laughed.

I started dancing to the song.

"Do you want **coffee** with that, Nora?" I joked.

"How can six plus kids possibly make so much noise eating dinner?!" Qrow exclaimed.

Qrow and Oscar were standing next to Jaune seconds later. Nora pressed her scroll to stop the song. Oscar gave a small laugh.

Everyone relocated to the second floor living room, with Weiss and Yang having finished being filled in on what everyone else knows so far.

"Miss Xiao Long, is this more or less what your mother told you?" Ozpin asked.

Yang didn't respond, still having her arms crossed.

"For the most part." Weiss replied.

"You forgot something. You forgot to tell everyone what you did to Qrow and my mother." Yang stated with a glare.

Ruby gasped.

"What is she talking about?" Jaune asked.

"Oh, great." Qrow realised.

"Hm, that's not a secret I thought she would give up so easily. Your mother must trust you a great deal." Ozpin said, with confidence.

Yang scowled at him.

"My ability to reincarnate, though a curse, isn't without a few key benefits. Much like the Maidens, I too possess a certain… "magical" power. (he stood up and walked next to Qrow) Using this power, I was able to gift the Branwen twins the ability to "see" more, to move freely and be unburdened by their natural bodies. I… well… gave them the ability to turn into birds. (he chuckled) Rather ridiculous sounding out loud, isn't it?" Ozpin admitted.

 _Oscar: (mentally) Wait, what?_

"Uncle?" Ruby asked, softly

"You turned them… into birds." Ren repeated in confusion.

"Alright, now you're just messing with us." Nora said in disbelief.

"What else is new?" Jaune asked, angrily.

"He's telling the truth. We saw it. Yang's mom… changed, right in front of us." Weiss confirmed.

"That ability must have disadvantages. Salem is probably aware of Qrow and Raven's ability" I stated, gravely.

"And what about avoiding flying Grimm and hunting season for birds?!" Bernice cried.

"Why would you do something like that? I mean, what is wrong with you?" Yang demanded at Ozpin.

"Yang, that's enough! We made a choice. We wanted this." Qrow remarked.

Yang relented.

"May I? (Qrow nodded) Granting this power to them was no trivial task, and I can assure you it was not done frivolously. I required assistance in gathering information on Salem's plans, as well as searching for Maidens when their hosts became unclear." Ozpin explained.

"Okay, so, have you done this with others? Like General Ironwood? Or Professor Goodwitch?" Ruby asked.

"As helpful as that might be, unfortunately it is not that simple. My power is finite, and if I'm being honest, dwindling. The amount that I gifted to Qrow and Raven was, all things considered, rather miniscule. You see, centuries ago, I sacrificed a great deal of magic to four young women, who I hoped would use my gift for good. They were the first Maidens. (everyone was silent for a moment) Miss Xiao Long, it was never my intention to lie to you. To any of you. There are just some matters that I prefer to… "play close to the chest". I believe that's how you phrased it?" Ozpin asked as he then looked at Qrow.

Qrow chuckled.

"Yeah." He replied.

"Everyone has a choice. The Branwens chose to accept their powers and the responsibilities that came with them. And later, one of them chose to abandon her duties in favour of her own self-interest. Now, all of you have a choice. If anyone wishes to leave, now is the time. There's no shame or disgrace in abstaining, only in retreat." Ozpin stated.

Everyone was silent as they pondered Ozpin's words.

"Very well, then." Ozpin said, calmly.

"You said we could leave but where can we go? We don't even LIVE here!" I cried.

"Yeah so we have no where to go" Bernice added.

Yang suddenly stood up.

"Yang?" Ruby asked, worriedly.

"If Ruby sticks around, then I will too. If there's one thing I know about her, it's that she somehow always knows the right thing to do. (she smiled at Ruby after saying that) But, if we're going to help, if we're going to keep risking our lives, no more lies. No more half-truths." Yang pointed out.

Everyone remained silent. Ozpin and Qrow exchanged a brief look with each other. Ozpin pondered Yang's words for one last moment, before responding.

"Understood." Ozpin replied while smiling.

Yang sat back down.

"So… what now? I mean, what can we do?" Jaune asked.

"Mm, that is a difficult question. One that I believe is best answered tomorrow." Ozpin replied, wisely with careful consideration.

"What do you mean?" Jaune asked.

"The road ahead is undoubtedly filled with hardships and peril. However, it's been far too long since you have all been together. (he put his hand on Yang's shoulder) Please, take tonight, enjoy this moment." Ozpin reassured them.

Yang smiled.

Suddenly Oscar's eyes glowed, with Ozpin giving him control back to his body. Oscar realized he had his hand on Yang's shoulder, quickly took it off and nervously holding his cane in his hand. Yang and Weiss laughed at him.

"Oooohhh. Raven? Qrow? They're birds! Cracked it!" Nora exclaimed upon realizing the connection which made Weiss and Yang stop laughing.

Ren shook his head at Nora being slow on the uptake.

I took the others into the kitchen to talk privately.

"Do you really trust Raven more than Ozpin?" Sky asked with concern.

"Yes, well to an extent" Bernice replied.

"But Ozpin reassured us that it was a gift" Chee Chee pointed out.

"Well, I'm not 100% convinced and since we don't have any additional help to get the maiden and the fact that Bernice, Weiss, Yang and I were at Raven's tribe not too long ago; We're not going anywhere any time soon" I said, with certainty.

"So Raven told you to question everything you're told. How are we suppose to pass this test if we can't even trust each other and our allies?!" Kenny hissed.

"Well I already graduated to that level, remember? It's actually YOUR test. If you need me I'll be outside" I said in annoyance as I marched outside where Qrow was reflecting on the lost huntsmen he couldn't find.

"Hey Qrow" I sighed.

"Hey...Grace" He replied, awkwardly.

"I don't think we're going to reach Raven in time. For all we know, Salem could have sent a team to her already without us knowing" I pondered.

"Raven can take care of herself. She is in the 'Grey area' of morals after all" Qrow replied while constantly staring at the sky.

"But don't you see it as a curse? Your semblance is misfortune after all" I questioned.

"A curse? Well, i'm guessing Raven may regret making that choice but it has its many benefits. Like keeping an eye on family as i'm 95% certain Raven does as well" Qrow reasoned.

"Oh...well, even so I can't completely trust Ozpin until he comes clean with EVERYTHING" I proclaimed.

"Very well, but like Oz said you're mean to enjoy your time together because time like this won't come often if a war starts" Qrow expressed, sombrely.

"I know about the war, Qrow. We're not going to be here when it happens" I mumbled.

"What?" Qrow asked in surprise.

"We're not staying past the fall of Haven even if it is prevented. Our mission is to help for a limited time only and no longer than that. We can't risk Salem discovering our presence here" I quavered.

"I understand. You don't have to tell me the whole story, Grace" Qrow responded in a calm and understanding manner.

"I'm sorry I wasted your time" I sighed as I headed back inside.

A spoon went flying into Qrow's back from the kitchen.

"Sorry!" Ruby called out.

Meanwhile...

At the Branwen Tribe camp's entrance, Shay D. Mann and two other bandits stood guard, conversing with each other.

"Hey ugly!" Mercury cried from the forest.

With Shay and the bandits' attention drawn, Mercury Black and Emerald Sustrai walk out from the forest toward the camp's entrance.

"Is Raven Branwen home?" Emerald asked.

"(sighed) Ya know, I've had a real bad week. So, I think I'm gonna take it out on you—" Shay began.

He stopped mid-sentence when he noticed Cinder Fall and Arthur Watts walked out of the forest and joined the two of them.

"Hm, doesn't look like he wants to cooperate, Boss." Mercury reported.

"Then make him." Cinder ordered.

"I was hoping you'd say that." Mercury grinned.

Emerald proceeded forward. Shay and the other bandits held their ground while Emerald unsheathed her weapons, twirling them before they transform into their sickle forms.

She rushed at the bandits as they tried to shoot at her but she dodged them with quick movements.

She used her semblance to make them see her defeated on her knees which they instantly believed due to the mind trick.

She used this opportunity to take them all down since they let their guard down with the illusion.

"Well done, Emerald. Bandits, tell Raven we wish to speak with her immediately" Cinder stated.

One of them rushed off to alert Vernal of their presence.

In Menagerie….

In the evening (Approximately 5 days after Ilia met the fox brothers)...

Nuri and Nova arrived in Kuo Kuana to warn Ghira and Kali about the imminent danger coming.

Sun was the look out for the guards and noticed them coming toward the Belladonnas' house.

"We have visitors!" He called.

The guards were stationed around every exit of the house with Green being stationed close to Blake's room.

In a matter of minutes, Nuri and Nova were at the door and Sun stood in their way.

"We need to speak with Ghira. It's a matter of urgency" Nuri stated.

"No one is getting past this door unless you're actually trustworthy. Who are you really?" Sun asked.

"We have news about Adam and what he plans to do. The Belladonnas are in danger, but we can't discuss it out here" Nova said in a hushed voice.

"Sun, it's alright. Come inside" Kali reassured him.

Nova and Nuri were taken inside to talk with the whole family + Sun.

"Ghira, Adam is now high leader of the white fang and he tried to assassinate Sienna. You need to leave while you still can, you're going to target you all." Nuri said as calmly as he could in a serious voice.

"Is Sienna-" Ghira began.

"She's safe. We were sent by her to warn you all. Please, we can protect the citizens. Just run to safety!" Nova pleaded.

"Kali, You, Blake and Sun will have to leave quickly. I will stay. If I do down fighting, make sure Sienna or someone worthy of continuing my work takes my place" Ghira stated with certainty.

"Dad…" Blake with a look of shook and sadness.

"GO!" Ghira urged.

Ghira looked towards Green.

"You there, make sure they leave safely. My time has come" He added, gravely.

Green nodded silently and followed them outside.

Ghira sighed.

A familiar silhouette appeared near the side door.

"I see you're here already" Ghira turned around.

"Ilia"

She came into the light and stared him straight in the eye.

"If you do this, she'll never forgive you" He reminded her, sadly.

"I know." Ilia replied, softly.

She gently nodded her head as a signal and a solider with a wolf-like mask came from behind.

Then Ilia silently went off to follow Blake as part of her mission as Ghira fought the wolf faunus as hard as he could on his own.

To be continued...

 **And then the TRUE Cliffhanger begins!**

 **Yeah i'm going to mix and match episode stuff with my own stuff so it still works as my story.**

 **As I've already pointed out, the Knights won't be staying after the fall of Haven, they'll be escaping to another place as soon as possible so Akira and Neo don't spot them when they eventually arrive in Haven.**

 **Another story may fill in the blanks as to what the Rouges were doing during this time so look out for that. I hope you're enjoying my additional scenes to it.**

 **Don't worry, they're going to unlock their semblances soon but at this rate I don't really see team RNJR + Weiss, Yang, Qrow and Oscar/Ozpin reaching Raven as Weiss and Yang just returned from being there so...**

 **Plus Blake is in real danger so...yeah.**

 **Will Ghira die in this fight? Will Blake be able to reach Ilia's good side and will Sun ever get a relationship? Stay tuned to find out!**


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6- Exploration, Neo update and other targets

 **This will be my chapter for the new year. Look out for surprises in Mistral as this is all me now.**

 **I'm borrowing the beacon relic in Patch theory idea and NewDreamer's OCs known as 'Team VRSZ'(Versus) for this chapter. Enjoy!**

While Qrow was fast asleep, Oscar was listening to the radio with Team RNJR and the Knights who trusted Ozpin.

"This is Thorax Timber, from the syndicate bottom level of Mistral. I just got word that the criminals are gathering together to discuss plans on overthrowing the council. Officials are advising everyone to stay indoors unless you really need rations of food." The reporter insisted.

"Patch, Nora; could you do us a favour and go out to get more food? Since we can't risk being spotted by Salem's informants and Oscar is the most at risk even though the villains aren't quite aware of his status" I asked, desperately.

"Understood, Grace. Nora, are you read-" Patch began.

Nora was already near the door with a backpack and Lien notes in her possession.

Nora beamed at him.

"Did you say something, Mr Cat?" She asked, gleefully.

"Nothing" He squeaked.

"Patch, remember keep her away from **Coffee!** " I warned him.

He nodded to reassure me, but Nora dragged him out of the door in 10 seconds flat!

I chuckled with the others while thinking about what mischief Nora would get him into.

-Patch's POV-

Nora dragged me toward the market to my surprise with the elevator.

We went down two levels to the local market filled with different stalls of items like clothes, food and daily appliances.

At the same time…

Inside a hidden hideout with pictures of the light and dark brothers and the other religious figures of Remnant with yin and yang symbolism were four individuals who were conversing with Hazel due to their ties to Salem.

"We hired you and some of the other criminals in this place to look out for Qrow and the children. If you don't keep your eyes open for them, Salem won't be pleased" Hazel stated through the scroll.

"We're on it, boss. Salem literally has our jobs on the line for this mission" A 19 year old girl with purple eyes, faint scars all over her body except her face due to being on the run with an outrageously large bounty, side cut hairstyle with long purple hair on the right side reaching down to her chin with the left side of her head has blonde hair in a buzz cut fashion wearing a dark purple sleeveless shirt with a stretched collar in front of her face that can be used as a mask to cover her nose and mouth and an outline of her tulip symbol located at the bottom right side of the shirt, rough black jeans and black combat boots along a waist bag holding her weapon of choice (throwing knives) replied.

"And remember, VRSZ make sure nothing interferes with our plans for Mistral" Hazel warned as the signal ended.

They had their own special communication line from the criminal underground which didn't relay on the CCT towers to communicate with others.

"And we gave in to the blackmail because….?" A young man with short ginger hair, a short beard, and brown eyes who was muscular wearing a dark yellow, sleeveless shirt that was woven with dust underneath a black, zipped-down jacket with green lining, four black buttons, and folded down collar, dark grey pants (Jeans) with gold and black shoes trailed off.

"Because, she threatened our very lives and our reputation for this, Zelts! Violet has a bounty so we're kinda like outlaws, right?" A guy with Dark skin, amber eyes (The right one is bionic), and short black hair with a long scar running across the side of his head in a Tron Line fashion, a small sliver of a scar along where his right bionic eye was and a cobalt blue tattoo of the Delta symbol which is his symbol at the base of his neck wearing a cobalt blue, long sleeve compression shirt, with only the right sleeve, black seams along the chest, back and arm, a metal arm bracer on his left wrist, a pair of black cargo pants with a blue streak running down the sides until they reach the bottom pockets and black sneakers with white straps asked.

"Yes, so who wants to steal something? Remus?" A guy with black eyes, slick back black hair except for a streak of spiky silver hair on the left acting as bangs over his left eye wearing a silver shirt with black trouser pants along with a belt that had holsters for his guns, shiny black shoes, a storage pack on his right leg, and has one black fingerless glove from his mentor on his left hand asked.

Remus, the one in blue, shrugged.

"Silver, isn't the meeting with all the criminals starting soon?" Violet pointed out.

"Let's do this" Zelts stated as they began to head through the shady parts of the lower levels but then Silver stopped them.

"Look" Silver whispered as he pointed at me and Nora looking at the different stalls.

"Should we steal their scroll?" Remus asked.

Silver nodded, and they stealthily grabbed my scroll while we were distracted.

"STOP, THEIF!" the owner cried.

We turned our heads and saw team VRSZ (pronounced Versus) running away with my scroll.

Nora offered me her hand as she used her hammer to speed after them as they boarded the elevator to go down the mountain on a wild goose chase all the way to the criminals' meeting place.

As we went down the elevator after them, I noticed that the low levels were a lot scarier than the upper levels. With the more prominent shades of grey, purple, white and black used in these levels with dealers around every corner; Even Nora could see why this place was meant to be avoided.

 _Can't back down now, Patch. You have a job to do_ I thought as we then got off the platform near the bottom of the mountain and followed the four individuals inside.

Within the meeting place were criminals of every kind: Arms dealers, drug dealers (if there are drugs in Remnant), Murders, thieves, freelancers like Team VRSZ (Blackmailed or not), traders, crime lords of all kinds etc.

All from across remnant which was prominent by the clothes of their culture: White and blue for Atlas, greens for Vale, a mixture of dark and vibrant colours for Mistral and sandy, bright colours for Menagerie and Vacuo.

"So, everyone, when's the best time to strike the council where it hurts?!" A big time crime lord, Sneachta cried.

"I suggest we wait until a week after the full moon!" Silver announced.

At this, everyone began to argue as Team VRSZ left, seeing as their distraction worked only for us to block their way.

"Hand it over" I stated.

During the confusion, Sneachta who was a powerful lord over ice supplies wearing grey armour came out of the meeting.

"VRSZ, give back the scroll. I'll take care of this" He ordered as the team went back into the meeting to ensure they didn't attack on the full moon at all.

"Now then, 'children'. We can both try to help each other if the price is right" Sneachta offered.

"What's the catch?" I asked.

"In exchange for you stealing Ozpin's cane, I can help you with one desire" the crime lord replied.

"Will you kill one of Salem's followers for us?" Nora asked.

Sneachta nodded.

"Fine, but we'll only steal it before the full moon" I agreed, begrudgingly to Nora's surprise.

"So, it's a deal" Sneachta smiled as he shook my hand.

So, with the deal set, we bought the food we needed on the way back to the house.

 _What did I just do?!_ I thought in distraught.

-Grace's point of view-

"We're back!" Nora sang.

"Sweet, more food!" Jaune grinned.

"Let's go to bed now, we waited so long for your return" Weiss complained.

So, we all went to bed together.

Oscar laid in bed looking at the ceiling.

"Ozpin, are you ever going to address Ruby's eyes?" Oscar asked.

 **"I'm getting there. I have confidence that with the proper training, she can stop Salem and end this cycle of the curse"** Ozpin replied.

"I sure hope so" Oscar sighed.

Meanwhile…

Neo was staying in contact with Salem, Cinder and President Morty.

Where in the world are you? – Cinder texted.

Neo looked around to see desert as far as the eye could see from the wind and heat-protected city of Vacuo.

Vacuo- Neo replied.

Great news, we got into Raven's tribe. You just wait until we target Atlas next to give Ruby the message- Cinder sent.

Understood- Neo texted.

Neo, is Akira still with you? – Salem sent.

He's nearby. Do you have any spies I can check on in Vacuo?- Neo asked.

You can check on Team VRSZ's connections like Absinthe – Salem suggested.

Understood. Will keep you posted on my progress. -Neo sent to Salem.

Let me know when you plan on targeting Atlas so I can get there on cue- Neo sent to Cinder.

Neo, We're going to send Nova to help you when she's done assisting the white fang- President Morty sent.

I get it- Neo sent to him.

Then she turned off her scroll for the time being and went inside the city to look for Salem's Vacuo spies.

-To be continued-

 **Neo's part will be continued at a later date but the main stuff like stealing the cane play a factor in the next chapter, don't worry.**

 **If you HAVE seen Chapter 11 of Volume 5, I assure you my take on it will play out slightly different (And will be after chapter 7 BTW).**

 **Yes team VRSZ will return!**

 **Sneachta- means Snow Lich in Irish with the allusion being the Lich King from World of Warcraft.**

 **See you in 2018!**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7- the act of betrayal, confessions and a look at the future

 **This chapter will be more detailed with information that is missing from the episodes it is partly following (At this point it is a Cannon AU now).**

 **Hopefully, the speech that Blake does in chapter 10 will be just as impactful here…**

 **So, some dialogue is from chapter 9 and 10 of Volume 5 with my own twist and additions to it. Altogether this is an alternative version of chapter 9 and 10 due to how the previous chapter went.**

 **Oh I'd like to thank my pal New Dreamer for mentioning me in his story notes and allowing me to borrow his OCs for my story! :D**

 **Enjoy!**

Ghira released his claws and fought the wolf faunus solider while some of his guards did their best to defend the house while getting shot at.

Corsac and Fennec arrived with their pistol swords to finish the job.

"It's about time our chieftain steps down" Corsac said, in an eerily voice.

"Yes, brother. I agree" Fennec replied, sounding just as menacing.

After taking down the solider, he attacked the two brothers.

The two fox brothers were swift in their movements as they dodged his careful attacks and then laughed their swords at him in a synchronised form which Ghira blocked.

At the same time….

Other white fang soldiers shot at Kali as she, Sun, Green and Blake were near the docks.

Kali grabbed a gun and shot back.

"I'll cover you, go!" She cried.

Other faunus did their best to assist her in battle like a bunny faunus solider.

"But Mom! We need to go back!" Blake cried.

"I want to help too but we're outnumbered" Sun pointed out.

Blake was painfully conflicted by the situation.

She ran towards some of the white fang soldiers and knocked them down with her weapons.

Ilia's company, the spider faunus girl known as Trifa and another lizard-looking faunus who had spots like Ilia's on their cheeks and arms attacked Kali as Sun helped some of the civilians aboard the ship as fast as possible.

Trifa had sliver-grey hair in a side fringe, grey eyes and grey veins on her arms along with grey hands where her spider silk comes from wearing a black outfit.

"Mom!" Blake exclaimed.

"Blake, we need to go" Green said, softly.

Yuma was sent to help the fox brothers finish off Ghira in the mansion.

The trio managed to make it to the boat just as Nuri and Nova called some back up to protect the citizens.

Nova alerted the citizens about the attack on the chieftain and that ignited the spark that was needed to convince them to fight back against the white fang.

Without their knowledge, Ilia boarded the ship as well in a clever disguise as they travelled to Mistral while Blake's parents fought for their lives.

Kali unfortunately got injured during the attack but that caused the nocturnal Faunus to raise up and help defend her as the boat left with the civilians who couldn't fight.

Back in the secret White fang hideout, Ebony received a message from Nova to enact the plan.

"Sienna, it's time to do operation ember" Ebony reported.

Sienna readied her weapons and smiled.

"Let's go fix the White fang" She remarked as the two of them left to join the fight on Menagerie.

Meanwhile in Mistral…

It was early morning in Mistral. Ruby was lying on the ground on the patio outside of the training room watching a group of four white birds flying together, before one of them flew away from the group. Yang Xiao Long peeked over her head.

"What are you doing up?" Ruby asked.

"Can't fall back to sleep." Yang replied.

"Ah, me neither." Ruby confessed.

"Well, fortunately, coffee exists." Weiss stated as she carried a tray with three cups of coffee and walked over to join her teammates.

She lowered the tray down so Yang could grab a cup.

"No, please!" Ruby cried.

"Don't worry, I put in blasphemous amounts of cream and sugar, just for you." Weiss reassured her while holding the cup out in front for Ruby.

"Oh yeah! Nice Weiss strikes again!" Ruby exclaimed.

Suddenly, Weiss pulled the cup away just as Ruby was about to grab it.

"I will pour this on you and it will burn." Weiss joked.

She hands the cup to Ruby, who nervously giggles. Weiss sits down next her teammates and grabs her cup of coffee after placing the tray down next to her.

"Can't believe we're actually in Mistral." Yang reflected with astonishment.

"That's what you can't believe?" Ruby asked.

"Well, yeah! And all the other magic and stuff. But… Okay, you know what I mean!" Yang exclaimed.

"I honestly wasn't sure if I'd ever see you two again." Weiss confessed.

"Well, here's to defying expectations." Yang stated with a smile as she raised her cup.

Yang and Weiss clinked cups together, while Ruby gulped her cup down in one go, opening one eye to glance at the others' cups.

"I just wish Blake could be here with us." Ruby admitted sadly.

"Yeah, well, she made her choice." Yang stated, looking away from the two girls.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Weiss asked.

"I mean she could've been here if she just stuck around. It's no big deal though. We'll be fine." Yang said, bitterly.

Ruby and Weiss looked at her with concern.

"Don't you want her here?" Ruby asked.

"Why would I want her here?" Yang remarked, bluntly.

"Are you still mad at her for leaving?" Ruby asked, worriedly.

"(scoffs) Oh, whatever gave you that idea, Ruby? No, I'm totally fine. I'm great." Yang replied, sarcastically.

"Okay, calm down." Weiss cautioned.

"Don't tell me to calm down!" Yang exploded as her eyes turned red.

Ruby and Weiss gain startled expressions.

"Whoa, Yang." Ruby said, feeling startled.

Yang realized what she did, and her eyes turned back to normal. Her hand shook while holding her cup.

"Whatever." Yang muttered.

Then she got up and left while Ruby and Weiss watched her before exchanging concerned looks with each other.

Meanwhile…..

I was watching Sky, Kenny and Chee Chee spare with Ren, Jaune and Nora for some early training in the dojo-like room.

"Grace, we have a problem" Bernice whispered.

"What is it?" I asked, feeing very concern by her sudden appearance next to me.

"Not in front of everyone, Patch needs to tell you this himself" Bernice stated.

I sighed.

"Lead the way"

Bernice smiled and nodded.

She took me to the room Patch was in which he shared with Oscar for some reason.

"Grace, I got another vision and it's not good. We have to speed up the training process because all of you are running out of time!" Patch said, urgently.

"Wait, you don't mean…." I trailed off in horror of the realisation.

 _We'll have to leave a lot sooner than expected!_ I thought, gravely.

"What about team RNJR? How are we supposed to help them without changing too much of the timeline before then?" I questioned him.

"Ask Ozpin about Ruby's inherited ability, hope Raven can be a neutral 'ally' of some kind and get ready to 'get out of dodge' as they say" Patch advised in a cautious tone.

"Then we'll do just that to get the 'ball' rolling and hope Raven's bandits are willing to help us since we're outmatched" I replied, grimly.

"Oh, and one more thing: Neo will deliver the message with the Grimm faunus in Atlas not Mistral, but you still need to prepare to leave because if any one of Salem's followers see you here; we'll be history!" Patch warned.

"We understand, thank you for the clarification Patch. I'll make sure Oz trains Ruby with her eye ability or she won't last long against Salem" I replied, gravely.

Later on….

I was walking past Yang's room heading towards the living room where Oscar was when I accidently overheard part of their conversation.

"I know it's not easy. I wish she hadn't left too. The only thing we can do now is be there for her when she's ready. When she comes back." Weiss stated.

Yang lowered her hands from her face.

"If she comes back." Yang remarked, sorrowfully.

"She will. Yang... You, Ruby, and even Blake are more like family to me than my brother or even my own father. I would do anything for you three, and I'm willing to bet Blake feels the same way. So, when she's ready, I'll be there for her. And I know we're not as close, but… I'm here for you too." Weiss reassured her.

Weiss smiled and Yang calmed down.

I went away to confront Oscar, so no one would notice that I overheard the conversation.

They heard a knock at the door, which opened to reveal Ruby.

"Is, uh… everything okay?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah, it is." Yang replied while smiling.

Ruby sighed in relief.

In the training area…

The Disney Knights who were still loyal to Ozpin were training continuously with Oscar, Ren and Qrow.

"Ok, guys. Great work this morning, can we have breakfast now?" Nora asked.

"Isn't it like Noon?" Ren asked.

"Nah, I call it Mor-noon" Nora exclaimed.

"Alright, we'll take a break but remember everyone; Practise is key to improvement" Qrow stated.

They had all improved since the day they started, and Ozpin was going to give more information about his plan to stop Salem to everyone soon.

While everyone got a break, I confronted Oscar head on.

"Oscar! Let me talk to Oz, this is something he needs to hear" I demanded.

Oscar glowed green as Ozpin took over again.

"Yes, Miss Quade?" He asked, elegantly.

"Are you going to train Ruby to control her eye abilities, so she can face Salem if you end up failing again?" I asked with anger burning in my eyes.

"Yes…Eventually. Worry not, child I will teach her. She's in very safe hands" Ozpin replied, reasonably.

"Ok, but you better keep your promise to yang as well; Tell everyone the WHOLE truth" I reminded him, coldly.

"I will in time" Ozpin sighed.

I sighed in annoyance and walked out to my separate room in frustration.

Somewhere in Mountain Glenn….

Merlot and Pandora had just finished created a new species of Grimm with his green serum; a manticore and a cat breed.

The cat Grimm was a large black cat, the size of a lion, with red eyes, green veins due to the serum and very sharp claws.

The Manticore was a large lion creature with dragon wings and scorpion tail with red eyes, a poisonous stinger and sharp claws.

Both Grimm had the usual red, white and black colour scheme other than the fact that they both had Merlot's serum but only one had the revealing veins.

With the experiment a success, Merlot sent Pandora away and got the two Grimm ready for shipment for the Vale faction of the white Fang to deliver to Salem.

On the Boat….

"What should we do when we get to Mistral?" Sun asked.

"We warn the headmaster there and hope my parents survived the attack with the town's help" Blake admitted, sadly.

Blake's ears twitched.

"So, you followed me here, have you come to redeem yourself?" Blake asked.

She turned around but Trifa who had managed to sneak onto the ship before it left caught her in a web.

"No, I did try to warn you to leave but you were too stubborn to listen. You and your family are holding the Faunus back! We all must make sacrifices for the greater good, no matter how much it hurts. Why else do you think we trying to assassinate your parents?!" Ilia hissed.

"Because we're trying to protect people?! In what world do you live in where attacking the innocent is the right thing to do?!" Blake cried.

"The same one as you! There's no such thing as innocent! There's no right thing to do! Only what's best for us! There's the humans that still hate the Faunus, and there's the others who stand by and let the hate happen! But you know what snuffs out hate? Fear. I don't like hurting people. But I'll tell you this… (she pointed her weapon at Blake) ...it's gotten us results." Ilia stated, coldly.

"Yeah, look where it's gotten you." Blake retorted.

Ilia's eyes widened as she briefly pondered Blake's retort, but then she just shrugged it off.

"I see you're already making your way to Mistral but we're going to make you go straight to Adam" Ilia said, still sounding cold.

Blake looked very afraid, almost on the verge of tears.

"Ilia, please! You don't have to do this. This isn't you!" Blake cried as she struggled to get free.

"Yes. It. Is! But I guess back then you were just too busy falling for Adam to notice." Ilia said, changing from a confident tone to a more hurt tone.

Blake began to look confused as Sun was captured beside her.

"I was always jealous of the way you looked at him. (her spots turned pink) I wanted you to look at me that way. (she closed her eyes, and when she opens them, they are suddenly dark pink) But we can't always get what we want! (Her eyes then turn back to normal) Trifa, make sure they don't escape. I'm going to make sure the faunus don't leave the ship" Ilia confessed.

"You may think you're doing what's best for the faunus but you're wrong. They're using you and once you've fulfilled your purpose, they will throw you away in paper!" Sun cried.

"Captain, turn this ship around. We need to help the Belladonnas" Blake announced as she broke out of the web binding.

"But we captured you!" Ilia cried.

Blake smiled.

"No, you didn't" She smiled as she changed from Blake to Ebony and Sun changed into Nova.

"You're coming with us, pal" Nova stated, harshly as the ship sped on back to Mistral as fast as possible.

They were only 2 miles from Menagerie at this point.

Back on Menagerie, Sun was helping Ghira fight the fox brothers.

Kali with some of the guards fought the white fang members as Yuma flew in unannounced to the scene.

Kali and other of the guards used a shield to protect themselves as they got shot at and managed to put up a fight with the bat faunus.

Yuma was fast in his kicks, but Kali blocked them with the shield and then used it to knock him out cold.

Blake was in the meeting room looking for her mother just as Sienna joined in the fight to help the Belladonnas with her fraction of the white fang.

Thankfully, Nova used her semblance to get Ilia to the room that Blake was in, so they could have their actual fight.

Although, Nova was exhausted by the time she got Ilia to the right place and had to run outside to stay out of range of enemy attacks.

Outside…..

Sienna was fighting along side her faithful guards against the fox brothers' faction.

"So, you are alive, Adam will want to know about this!" a wolf solider barked.

"You won't last long enough to tell him" She hissed as she activated her semblance and charged while projecting an orange tiger around herself as she lashed each solider of the fox twins' fraction with her bagh nakhs.

She then switched out her bagh nakhs for her original weapon: a chain whip with three removable dust blast (fire, ice and lighting) that was on her waist and threw the red blade at the remaining soldiers which created a fire blast.

Sienna roared like a tiger after they had fallen.

"Where's the rest of them?!" She growled.

"That way" one of her guards pointed to the west near the Belladonna house.

Sienna smiled.

Her semblance was the very reason she liked to use violence when necessary or she would go crazy otherwise.

On her way to the house, she noticed that some civilians were trying to help the Menagerie guard even as the 'Police' were being called to arrest the white fang.

She stopped and turned back to help them protect Kali.

"People of Menagerie, I am here to help!" She announced.

They were all shocked she was alive.

"Don't be alarmed, I'm not a ghost. I can help you protect Kali if you'll let me help you?" She offered.

They accepted, and she led them toward the WF soldiers that were with Yuma trying to attack Kali herself.

While Ghira was fighting one of the fox twins, Ebony used her illusion to look like Blake as she could assist him in battle while Sun was distracted with the other twin.

Corsac's weapon impacted Ghira's forehead in a dust attack…..

Meanwhile….

The former friends held their weapons tightly while staring at each other.

"Did you come in here to hide?" Blake asked.

"I told you, I didn't want this." Ilia stated in a gloomy voice.

"But you're still here!" Blake pointed out.

"I don't have a choice!" Ilia confessed.

"Of course you do!" Blake cried.

Ilia just looked away.

"Just… stay out of my way." Blake warned.

Blake put Gambol Shroud on her back and started walking away.

Suddenly, Ilia lept and charged at Blake but her form disappeared.

"BLAKE!" Ilia cried.

Blake then reappeared a few feet away behind Ilia as she held Gambol Shroud in a defensive stance, while Ilia began attacking with the whip form of her weapon.

"You left me alone to fend for myself with just Adam for company. It tore me up. The fact that no one tries to stop the prejudice we go through is a crime on its own!" Ilia yelled while attacking in her red and yellow angry form.

Blake dodge rolled the attacks and then ran along the desks and chairs in the room as Ilia tried to use her whip to hit her.

"You think you don't have a choice? Well you do, if you just asked me or my parents, we'd be able to protect you from Adam without all the needless violence!" Blake remarked as she managed to dodge and block Ilia's attacks, and used her ribbon to wrap around Ilia's wrist.

"You think that would stop Adam's plan? I had a feeling this would go south: Targeting your parents would only cause discord here. This was all Adam's idea, Blake. So, you can blame him for this stupid attack!" Ilia admitted as she was pulled toward Blake, followed up with the latter kicking the chameleon Faunus to the ground.

The two then locked blades with each other.

"Why do you feel like we have to hurt people to get our way?!" Blake cried.

 _Even if it IS Adam's Fault_ Blake thought.

"(grunts) Because it works!" Ilia cried.

"That doesn't make it right!" Blake remarked, desperately.

Ilia growled as she pulled the trigger on her weapon, giving an electrical charge that caused Blake to drop her katana a few feet away from her.

"Shouldn't you at least try to see the bigger picture? Adam doesn't care; He created a lot of casualties in beacon: Faunus and Humans alike including his own soldiers!" Blake cried as she pulled out her cleaver, but Ilia jumped from the desk and did a turn kick that knocked Blake over another desk, causing her to drop her weapon.

Ilia whipped at Blake again, but she used her Semblance to get out of the way. Blake took cover behind a desk.

"Stop lecturing me!" Ilia cried.

Blake peeked from behind the desk and noticed Ilia's Grimm mask left behind on the ground. Ilia quietly turned the lights off in the room, causing it to go dark.

Blake quickly went to pick up her katana while Ilia sneaked around the room camouflaged. Blake heard a creak on the floor, Ilia quickly knocked her back.

Blake used the pistol form of her weapon to shoot at Ilia, who quickly evaded the shots.

"Why couldn't you just leave?!" Ilia exclaimed.

"Because I run away too much." Blake stated while transforming her pistol into its katana form.

Blake dodged a couple more whips from Ilia.

"So, you are a COWARD?!" Ilia accused.

"Not anymore" Blake insisted, bravely as she took cover from behind the desk and took out two cartridges - one with fire Dust and the other with ice. She loaded the fire Dust cartridge in her weapon and aimed at the shrubbery at the top corner of the room.

"Sorry, dad" Blake muttered as she fired her weapon and the spreading flames started to light up the room, revealing Ilia's location.

With camouflage not an option anymore, Ilia engaged Blake in combat. The two started off with a mixture of sword clashes and hand-to-hand. Blake dodged out of the way of one of Ilia's attacks and started shooting at her with the pistol form of her weapon.

"Quit taking potshots and fight me like you mean it!" Ilia cried as she changed her skin colour to her red and yellow angry form while she deflected the shots with her whip at a fast pace.

Blake dodged another one of Ilia's whips and landed on the balcony above her where she took cover behind the railing.

"You used to see things the way I did! The way Adam did! If no one's going to do anything to stop the humans that attack us, then the only choice we have left… is to attack back!" Ilia ranted, angrily.

Blake loaded another cartridge in her pistol and began to fire at Ilia again. Ilia deflected the shots, but when she was going to use her whip again, her weapon was frozen in place.

Suddenly, a ribbon was wrapped around her weapon as Blake pulled it away and she lept from the balcony to kick Ilia to the ground, then she held her down.

"You're wrong, there's always another choice." Blake stated.

Ilia struggled to get up as Blake continued to hold her down.

"Ilia… please. You're a good person but you're making all the wrong decisions!" Blake insisted.

"SHUT UP!" Ilia shouted.

"Is this really what your parents would've wanted?!" Blake exclaimed.

"I don't know what else to do!" Ilia confessed as her voice broke as she spoke.

Suddenly, Ilia ceased her struggling and her eyes started to well up.

"I don't know what else to do…" Ilia sobbed as she began to change into her blue 'sad' form.

As Ilia continued sobbing, Blake heard a rumble. Corsac Albain was thrown through the wall, dropping his weapons. 'Ghira' jumped into the room as he growled at Corsac.

"Blake!" 'Ghira' cried as he noticed his daughter pinning Ilia to the ground.

Suddenly, Fennec stabbed Ghira in the back, who cried out in pain and slumped toward the ground.

"Dad!" Blake cried just before Ilia got her off her and kicked her into a nearby chair, knocking Blake out momentarily.

'Ghira' then got Fennec off his back and tossed him away as Corsac ran to him.

'Ghira' pulled the dagger out of his back and clashed fists with Corsac as the two then struggled to push each other as their hands interlocked.

Ilia just stared in disbelief at what's going on around her.

"Ilia! What are you doing?! Fight!" Fennec snapped at her which got her out of her trance.

Fennec pulled out another dagger and charged at Ghira. The chieftain manages to push off Corsac and dodges Fennec's swipes as he begins to fight both of them at once.

Fennec got tossed away for a bit and began to charge his weapon while Corsac and Ghira continued exchanging blows. Fennec then charged in again, giving a loud battle cry.

Ghira noticed him and grabbed his wrist, pointing his weapon as it fired at Corsac, who got blown back several feet away by the wind dust attack and was knocked unconscious.

"BROTHER!" Fennec cried.

Fennec tried to attack Ghira again, but Sun jumped in and kicked him away. Sun saw Blake struggling to get back up and angrily glared at Ilia who had a weak, sad expression.

"Go help Blake!" Ghira cried.

"On it!" Sun replied as he got on his famous weapons and charged at Ilia in combat mode.

He delivered a flurry of attacks with his shotgun nunchucks that overwhelmed Ilia and disarmed her. She was then pushed against pillar by Sun as she struggled to get out of his hold, the pillar she was getting pushed against started to crack.

"Stop!" Blake cried.

Sun and Ilia stopped to look at Blake.

"Please… (tears start streaming down her eyes)" Blake begged, fearfully.

Ilia managed to push Sun off her and fell to the ground. Suddenly the pillar started to crack even more, Sun moved out of the way quickly as the balcony above Ilia started to give way.

Ilia yelped as the balcony was about to fall on her but Ghira managed to lift the broken part of the balcony with his own strength while Ilia stared in awe.

"Go!" Ghira cried.

Ilia quickly got out of the way as Ghira was forced down on one knee to keep the balcony from falling on him. Sun used his Semblance to summon two light clones that go and help Ghira lift. Blake grabbed her katana and transformed it into her kusarigama form.

Unbeknownst to them, Fennec got back up and saw his brother still unconscious. He grabbed both of their daggers and ran towards Ghira.

Blake saw this and quickly used her weapon to wrap it around her father's torso and pulled him out as Fennec landed just below the falling balcony which crushed him and caused the dust in the daggers explode from impact, killing the younger Albain for good.

Ghira's semblance began to drain and shifted from Ghira to Ebony.

"Wait, who are you?" Blake asked.

"I'm a friend. Your dad is gravely hurt in the room next door. I took his place to protect him, Fennec made him go into a coma. You will need to let the police be aware, so they can take him to safety. In the meantime, I'll cover for him, so the people don't panic if that's ok?" Ebony explained.

"Ok, but you will have to explain why you're here at some point" Blake replied.

"Oh, and one more thing: Sienna came to help and I'm on your side" Ebony added.

"WHAT?!" Sun cried.

Afterwards, Kali entered the room dragging an unconscious Yuma, who had his hands tied behind his back.

"Mom!" Blake cried as Kali dropped Yuma as her daughter ran up to hug her.

"What have you done? You ruined everything. EVERYTHIIIIIIING!" Corsac cried darkly as he ruined Kali and Blake's embrace.

The Belladonnas and Sun took defensive stances. Corsac angrily ran forward, but suddenly, Ilia's weapon wrapped around his body, electrocuting him and knocking him unconscious.

With the battle over, Ilia started crying and fell to her knees as she broke down, with the Belladonnas and Sun looking on.

Outside, the menagerie Police helped Sienna and Nova keep the citizens calm as Nova was slowly recovering for using her semblance over a long distance.

Before taking Corsac outside for everyone to see, Blake quickly explained the situation with the real Ghira as some of the police got him on a hospital bed through the back door of the house, so they could take him to the hospital without attracting unwanted attention.

"Fennec is dead and there's some other soldiers inside" 'Ghira' pointed out as he lay down a bunny guard and Corsac gently on the ground.

A few members of the police went inside to find the remaining soldiers.

"Was it worth it?" Saber asked, snarkily.

Corsac looked down, defeated. As the commotion continued, Blake shared brief looks with Sun and Ilia. Blake took a deep sigh as she went down the steps. Ghira notices his daughter walking away.

Kali stopped him, and they both looked on. Blake then stopped at one of the steps as she began to address the crowd.

"Humans didn't do this. (she pointed at the smoke coming from her house) We did this: Faunus. We did this to ourselves. We are just as capable of hate and violence as the humans, but I don't think any of us would jump at the chance to point that out. So why are we letting Adam do it for us?! By doing nothing and staying silent, we let others speak and act in our place. And if we're not proud of the choices they make, then we have no one to blame but ourselves. This is the message that Adam Taurus will bring to the world if no one stops him. But we can stop him! You have to understand that all of you are looking for simple answers to a very complicated problem. And I can't give that to you. I don't know how to make hate go away, I don't. But I know that this kind of violence is not the solution. I understand that to ask you to leave your homes and protect Haven Academy is asking you to put your lives at risk. But that's what's at stake. So, I'm going, and I'll stand by myself if I have to." Blake announced in her big speech.

"I'll stand with you!" Ilia cried.

Blake turned around with a surprised look on her face as Ilia stood up. With a pained expression, Ilia looked down.

"If… if you'd have me." Ilia add, nervously.

"Isn't that the White Fang girl?" a male faunus asked.

"I thought she hated the Belladonnas." A female faunus stated, in confusion.

Despite some of the crowd's murmuring amongst themselves, Blake smiled at her old friend. As Ilia proceeded forward, Saber suddenly stopped her in her tracks.

"You're not going anywhere!" Saber cried.

"Let her come." Blake stated.

"Huh? You're just going to forgive her? After everything she did?!" Saber exclaimed.

"I am." Blake replied, wisely.

Saber looked to Ghira, who nodded to let Ilia go. Ilia continued to walk down the steps to stand next to her friend.

"What does she think she's doing?" Saber asked.

"(smiling) She's learned a lesson that evaded me until I was much older: That there is strength in forgiveness." Ghira stated.

 _Just like what Blake told me from where I'm from_ Ebony thought.

Blake puts a hand on Ilia's shoulder, sharing a smile together.

"I'll go!" Mata, the teen ram faunus yelled as he stepped forward and raised his hand, followed by many more.

"I'll go too!" a female aquatic faunus added.

"I'll stand with you! I'll go! Yeah! Me too! Let's go! Yeah, let's go!" Other faunus which included Nova and Nuri yelled.

As more Faunus started to give Blake their support, Sun walked down the steps to join her and Ilia. The crowd was cheering as a majority agreed to volunteer. They all smiled at the crowd.

"Looks like we've got work to do." Sun observed.

"Thank you." Blake said, gratefully to him.

"(pointing to Ilia) You stabbed me." Sun pointed out.

Ilia looked down sorrowfully.

"I- (Sun playfully pinched her arm) Ow!" Ilia cried in pain.

"There. Let's just call it even." Sun stated, playfully.

Ghira and Kali then walked down the steps to join their daughter and her friends.

"We have about two weeks before Adam's attack on Haven. We're going to need shields, training, whatever we can do to protect as many people as possible. We'll need transportation too. For everyone" Kali pointed out.

"I think I know a ship captain who owes us a favour" Blake stated while smiling.

Sun grinned and nodded in agreement.

So, after two weeks of training civilians with Sienna, Nova and Nuri's help, they called the sea captain to help them all head off to Mistral.

Back at Raven's Tribe….

It was daytime at the Branwen Tribe camp. Raven Branwen sat alone in her tent sharpening her sword. Suddenly, Vernal entered the tent.

"Raven, we have a problem." Vernal stated with concern.

"What is it?" Raven asked.

"Salem's found us." Vernal replied.

Raven's eyes widen briefly.

"Salem… okay." Raven wearily.

"Four of her followers are waiting to speak with you." Vernal reported.

"Right. We planned for this… Bring me my helmet." Raven ordered as she stood up.

Outside of her tent, Cinder Fall, Arthur Watts, Emerald Sustrai, and Mercury Black stood waiting while the bandits surrounded them, eyeing them carefully. Raven stepped out of her tent with her mask on as she addressed her bandits.

"I don't recall inviting so many guests into our home. Either I'm losing my memory, (raising her voice) or you've all lost your spines!" Raven shouted at the bandits.

"Don't be too upset with them, Raven. Your men simply recognized the power of a Maiden when they see it. (her eye glowed and trailed fire) Which is why we'd like to have a word with you." Cinder stated in an unwaveringly calm tone.

"Leave us. Pack your things, then break down camp. We're moving." Raven ordered her tribe.

The bandits all left to do so.

"Little late to run and hide. You've been on our master's list for some time, so you must understand that we cannot allow you to slip away." Watts pointed out, courteously.

"I know all about your master, but I don't believe we've met." Raven said, with suspicion.

"We're the guys you should be afraid of." Mercury replied, menacingly.

"I doubt anyone should be afraid of you." Raven stated, nonchalantly.

"Oh yeah? Tell that to—" Mercury began.

"Quiet." Cinder commanded, coldly while cutting him off.

Mercury quickly relented.

"That's what I thought." Raven said, unamused while folding her arms.

"I'm Cinder Fall. This is my associate, Arthur Watts, and my disciples, Emerald and Mercury." Cinder said, in a formal manner.

"Two children you've tricked into following you, a disgraced Atlesian scientist, and a Fall Maiden with a surname so appropriate, she probably picked it herself. Something tells me you've got more than a slight case of egomania, is that about right?" Raven asked while roasting all four of them in style.

Mercury and Emerald exchanged a brief look, while Watts cleared his throat.

"Technically, I was also a doctor, but I must say, the rest was spot on." Watts pointed out, matter-of-factually.

"Aren't you perceptive." Cinder remarked.

"It's what's kept me alive." Raven pointed out.

"I'm afraid the only reason you're still alive is because you have something our master wants. Of course, if I'm wrong…" Cinder began, threateningly.

Cinder activated her Maiden power again and held out a small flame in her right hand, grinning evilly.

"Vernal!" Raven cried.

Vernal stepped out of Raven's tent and walked up next to her.

"So, this is the long-lost Spring Maiden. Prove it." Cinder challenged.

Raven and Vernal shared a glance with each other, with Raven nodding.

Vernal sighed and closed her eyes.

She held her hands out and suddenly, the wind started to pick up gradually. The blue sky turned to grey as clouds covered it and leaves blew in the wind. Watts, Mercury and Emerald covered their faces as thunder was heard, while Cinder smiled in amazement as she watched the Spring Maiden unleashed her power. Vernal then lowered her hands and opened her eyes as her powers settled.

"Vernal has done well under my guidance. I'd take that into consideration before you try anything." Raven warned.

Watts and Mercury brushed themselves off as Cinder spoke to Raven:

"Raven, I won't underestimate you, so please don't insult my intelligence. There is a slim chance you and your Maiden could escape today, but if you know our master as well as you claim to, then you know you could never truly escape her. But we come bearing an olive branch." Cinder explained.

"(walking up to Raven) The Maidens are merely a means to an end. Salem's true desires are the Relics locked inside the Huntsman Academies. Come with us. Allow Vernal here to unlock the Relic of Knowledge, and all previous acts of defiance against Salem will be forgiven. (whispering up to Raven's face) It's the best deal either of you are going to get." Watts stated.

Watts walked away from them to rejoin his group.

"You talk as if walking straight into Haven will be easy." Raven noted.

"That's because it will be. Headmaster Lionheart is loyal to Salem. And now, all we need is the key to the vault. (pause) You're not the only one to turn your back against Oz, Raven." Cinder pointed out, cunningly.

"(gripping the hilt of her sword) I'm not helping Salem, I'm not helping Oz! I don't want a part in any of this!" Raven cried.

"That ship sailed when you chose to harbour a Maiden. But if you come with us to Haven, we'll leave you, your tribe, and your little secret to live out the rest of your lives squabbling in the wilderness. We just... need... the Relic." Cinder stated, with conviction.

"I need time to think this over." Raven replied.

"You don't have time. In two days, Haven Academy will be destroyed by the White Fang. You're going to choose now." Watts stated, sternly.

"Backed me into a corner, huh?" Raven realised.

"So, are you with us, or against us?" Cinder asked.

After a tense moment, Raven removed her grip from her hilt and took her mask off.

"Agreements like these are built on trust. And forgive me for saying, but I don't trust a single one of you. You're going to need to give me more." Raven confessed.

"You are in a poor position to negotiate." Watts reminded her.

"I want my brother dead." Raven revealed.

"Qrow?" Cinder asked in shock.

"That's right. He knows I have Spring. And if you get your Relic, he's going to become a problem. I have enough problems to deal with. Qrow doesn't trust me, but he does trust Ozpin's other lieutenants. If Leo really is loyal to you, then you can order him to invite Qrow into an ambush. He arrives at Haven, you take him down, you get your Relic, and we all leave happy." Raven offered.

"Now this is a proposition I can get behind." Cinder smiled, slyly.

"Alright ladies, let's pause for a moment. We have one objective - retrieving the Relic of Knowledge. Now Qrow Branwen may be on our list of individuals we would very much like dead, but he's not going to go down without a fight, and he's not going to go down quietly. Our advantage here is just as you said - we walk straight into Haven, no resistance, no one the wiser. A battle with your brother throws that all out the window" Watts butted in as the 'voice of reason'.

"He's good, but not that good. All of us against him? It'll all be over in a heartbeat." Raven pointed out.

"But it's not just him. He has the students with him. He has Ruby!" Emerald pointed out in alarm.

"He certainly does." Cinder confirmed, slyly.

"If we leave the school a bloody mess, we will draw the attention of the authorities! The Kingdom will be on high alert, and the White Fang's attack will be ruined!" Watts cried.

"Then we wait. We wait until the full moon. Leo invites Qrow and his little fighters to Haven the same night Hazel and Adam arrive with the White Fang. As soon as the battle is won, the White Fang demolishes Haven, and any evidence we may have left behind is lost along with the school." Cinder proposed.

"Then, Salem leaves my people alone. For good." Raven added.

"You have yourself a deal." Cinder replied.

Cinder held her hand out to shake with Raven's, but Watts suddenly grabbed her wrist.

"Wait. Don't think I don't see what you're after. If this falls to pieces over a grudge with a child, I will not be taking the blame." Watts warned her.

"(glaring at him) Then what are you worried about?" Cinder asked icily as she activated her Maiden powers which burned Watts' hand, causing him to remove his grip and hold his hand in pain.

"Fly back home and tinker with your machines. (she held her hand out again in front of Raven) And tell Salem she'll get what she wants - and more." Cinder ordered, confidently.

Raven stood still for a moment, glaring at Cinder's hand in front of her, but then offered her own hand out and shook it with the Fall Maiden, sealing the deal.

After making the deal, Raven returned to her tent and Cinder's group left to return to their ship to camp out for the night.

Raven sat on her bed leaning her forehead to her hand. She heard someone enter her tent.

"Yes, Vernal?" Raven asked, without looking up while feeling stressed.

"I followed them as you asked." Vernal reported.

"Did they spot you?" Raven asked with slight concern in her voice.

"(scoffs) Of course not. They have a ship two klicks west of here, looks like they're staying there for the night." Vernal stated.

"Thank you, Vernal. (looking up) Anything else?" Raven asked.

"Do you… actually believe they'll let us go once they have the Relic?" Vernal asked

"Of course not. They'll never leave us alone. Once our purpose has come and gone, we'll be discarded. Salem only uses people until they are no longer useful. If we want to have any chance of defending ourselves against her, then we need this Relic. (she stood up from her bed) If Qrow and those brats want to follow Ozpin, then let them. When the chaos reaches its peak, we'll grab the Relic and make our escape." Raven replied with certainty and confidence.

"And the fact that your daughter will be a part of all that?" Vernal questioned.

"Doesn't matter. I warned her. She made her choice. (she approached the exit of her tent) This path won't be easy for us either, but we must do what's right for the tribe." Raven stated while brushing off the subject of Yang with little concern.

"I know. I'll do whatever it takes." Vernal stated, firmly.

"Good." Raven replied before she left the tent.

Vernal walked out to see where she had gone and noticed a cawing black bird and the sound of Raven's portal activating.

Then Raven in bird form arrived in Mistral through her portal as the sound of said portal was heard near the house Team RNJR were staying in.

Qrow was drinking from his flask while sitting on a bed when he heard Raven cawing and saw her through the window. Oscar Pine walked up to his doorway.

"Hey, Qrow?" Oscar asked.

Qrow turned his attention to him.

"Oz needs to talk to you." Oscar stated.

Qrow stood up and followed Oscar out of the room, looking over his shoulder at the window.

I watched Qrow and Oscar from the room I was in, still convinced that Ozpin was being suspicious almost on cue with Raven's arrival.

Qrow and Oscar went to the living room while Raven set out to put the plan she and Cinder agreed to into action.

With Ozpin now in control of Oscar, he and Qrow were sitting on the sofa with two cups in front of each other as Qrow sipped his cup.

"Things aren't looking good, Oz." Qrow stated, bleakly.

"Ever the optimist. (sipped from his cup) While I would not say our current predicament is… ideal, I think we can both agree that the situation could be much worse. Humanity is a resilient force." Ozpin replied, calmly.

"Oz, pro Huntsmen like that don't just bite it all at once. Salem's powerful. It seems like her reach is growing by the day. What does that say about humanity?" Qrow pointed out with suspicion.

"That there are indeed a misguided few who have filled their hearts with malice. It doesn't take a great number of people to cause harm, but I still believe there are far more people in this world willing to prevent it." Ozpin remarked.

As Ozpin was about to take another sip, Ruby Rose walked into the room.

"Um, excuse me?" Ruby asked.

"Ah, Miss Rose, join us. We were just about to gather everyone to discuss our next steps." Ozpin replied, optimistically.

"Oh, uh, great." Ruby said, nervously.

"Well, uh… we've been talking about the Relic at Haven... and the Spring Maiden, but… what about the Fall Maiden? Does that mean… Salem has the Beacon Relic?" Ruby asked.

Ozpin and Qrow shared a brief look with each other.

"Very astute, Miss Rose, I was wondering who would be the first to ask. No, thankfully she does not. It's true that the Relic at Haven is very much at risk, and for now, that should remain our primary focus. Let's just say I made finding the Relic at Beacon a… bit more challenging than at the other schools." Ozpin replied, ambitiously.

"Oh. (sighs in relief) That's good to hear." Ruby said, with less stress.

"It is, but let's not forget the challenges that still lie before us." Ozpin reminded her.

Ruby nodded.

"Why didn't you do that for all four schools?!" I cried.

They turned to look at me.

"You should have made it hard to find ALL the relics" I pointed out, harshly.

Ozpin sighed.

"At the time, I didn't consider that idea. You make a very good point" Ozpin agreed, sadly.

"Oh, uh… well, I did have one more question." Ruby piped up.

"No, my cane is not a Relic." Ozpin responded before Ruby uttered another word.

"I have no more questions." Ruby stated.

"What about your eyes, little miss chirpy?" I whispered in her ear to nudge her.

Her eyes widen.

"Yes, while this cane is indeed very precious to me, it is also just that - precious to me. While I admit it still has a few more tricks up its sleeve, I can firmly say that being a Relic isn't one of them. Now why don't you run and get the other students?" Ozpin suggested.

"What about my sliver ey-" Ruby began.

Suddenly, Qrow's scroll was vibrating and Qrow took it out from his pocket to see "LEO LIONHEART" calling.

He proceeded to answer said call.

"Yeah? ... Okay… yeah, we'll be there." Qrow said before he hung up.

"Who was it?" Ruby asked.

"(sighs while taking out his flask) It was Leo, says he had a breakthrough with the council. Thinks he might be able to get together a small raiding party for the bandits. He wants us to meet up at the school tomorrow night to walk us through it." Qrow replied.

"(gasps and smiles) Really? Oh that's great! I'll go get the others." Ruby said, excitedly before she ran out of the room while Qrow took a drink from his flask.

"Mmm, that sounds drastically different from your original conversation, does it not?" Ozpin questioned.

"It does." Qrow affirmed.

"Interesting…" Ozpin said, curiously.

"Things aren't looking good, Oz." Qrow cautioned.

"I know..." Ozpin said, softly.

Ruby told everyone the 'good news' about the planned meeting tomorrow; Only Ren, Jaune, Bianca and I were suspicious on this recent change.

"Guys, due to these turn of events…. We must start packing immediately so we can leave before night time comes tomorrow. We can not under ANY circumstances risk being seen by Salem's followers" I stressed.

At Leonardo Lionheart's office, the Haven headmaster sat at his desk in front of a blue holographic screen with the text "CALL END" before deactivating. Raven Branwen stood a few feet away from him, arms crossed and smiling.

"I still have questions for you." Raven pointed out.

"You're not alone in that." Lionheart agreed, timidly.

"(walking in front of his desk) You know, I never expected you would be the one to have the guts to betray Oz. Which makes me wonder, what does she have on you?" Raven asked.

"I'm helping her for the same reason you are - I'm afraid. We… we can't stop her… no one can…" Lionheart admitted.

"That's why I tried to leave when I did. I'm not afraid, I'm smart." Raven said, with a hint of arrogance.

"You can call it whatever you want, it doesn't really matter. We're here… helping her. (burying his face in his hands, sighing) I've crossed a line… I've done things that Ozpin will never forgive, and he shouldn't! I don't know where I go from here." Lionheart confessed.

"Man up! You did what you had to do to survive, there is no shame in that." Raven remarked while slamming her hands on Lionheart's desk.

"Who are you trying to convince?" Lionheart asked.

Raven didn't reply say as she left silent the room while Lionheart sadly leaned back while sighing.

So back at the mistral house….

Later that night, we frantically packed all of our belongings as time was running out for our mission in Haven.

The boat with Blake and her 'army' of Faunus were only 10 miles away from Mistral at that point.

While we were distracted, Patch stole the cane while Oscar was in a different room with Qrow and left a fake in its place.

Patch then snuck off to meet team VRSZ on the streets of the upper level where Haven Academy and the safe house was located.

"I'm glad you kept your end of the deal" Violet stated.

"Don't mention it. Tell your boss, we need them or you to kill Cinder" Patch said, darkly.

"Don't worry, we'll give them the message" Silver assured him.

"Just don't follow me home and try to avoid getting killed by Salem" Patch warned before he left.

"Hmmm… He might have a connection to the bird" Remus observed.

"Yeah, let's head back" Silver sighed.

"The upper levels are pretty cool, right guys?" Zelts asked.

"Yeah" Violet muttered.

 _We may have to report this to Hazel_ She thought.

Patch quickly went back to the house and got into bed as Nora had covered for him.

However, as he managed to get to sleep, he got a unexpected vision.

-Vision-

 _"Do whatever you want to me, just leaving my friends alone!" Jaune pleaded._

 _Cinder smiled._

 _Ruby saw Jaune and thought of Phyrra's death which activated her eye power but was stopped before it came into full force._

 _Something happened away from Patch's field of vision which made Jaune's face change to a look of utter despair._

 _"NOOOO!" Jaune cried._

 _"I don't have my real weapon!" Oscar cried._

 _"I can't believe you did that" I said, darkly to someone._

 _-End of Vision-_

Patch woke up in a cold sweat.

"What have I DONE?!" Patch cried to himself.

-To be continued-

 **Next time, we'll see how the knights' departure will affect the other characters and events of the attack on Haven as a whole.**

 **Yes, you'll get to see where the Disney knights go next before the attack (In the past) occurs (It will make sense when you see it).**

 **So yeah, Patch has stolen Ozpin's cane and feels very guilty.**

 **This will have repercussions on his mental state and inevitably the timeline of Remnant as well.**

 **And don't you worry: There will be more twists coming your way!**

 **Oh and this story will be on a hiatus for a while.**

 **Grace out!**

 **PS: Team VRSZ and Neo are essential to the rest of the story after the Knights leave**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8- Betrayals, Surprises, Major Consequences and curses!

 **Be prepared for a few new twists! :)**

 **Akili means Intelligent in Swahili.**

 **After this chapter, the Disney knights won't be seen until the very end of the story to sync up the time travel part.**

 **Enjoy!**

The next morning (On the day of the attack)…

Sky got out the time watch we had used to travel here as we had our packed things ready for our trip back.

"I do wish you could stay with us when we meet Leo tonight" Oscar sighed.

"I mean that would probably even the playing field, but we can't risk being spotted by anyone in association with Salem" I replied awkwardly.

"We'll miss you" Ruby stated as her eyes began to water.

"We'll miss you too. Ruby, I…." I began.

Then I faltered for a minute.

"Good luck with tonight, guys. You're gonna need it" Patch added, quickly.

"Goodbye!" We called out as team RNJR and the others waved at us as Sky used the watch to bring us back to present day Remnant.

-In Present Day Remnant (Unknown Volume era)-

Yang was waiting for us in the ruins of Atlas as the whole of Remnant was in ruins while Oscar was in chains in Vacuo as Sneachta gave Salem Ozpin's cane while in a broadcast.

"Patch, why did that guy have Ozpin's cane?" I asked, suspiciously.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I suggest we leave this place immediately or someone will spot us" Patch said, cautiously.

I gave in as we quickly teleported to Disney castle.

"Ah, Disney knights you're back! You did well in your latest mission together except for Patch. Before we give you your next mission, Patch, would you like to tell them what you did?" Mickey asked.

"I stole Ozpin's Cane. Oscar has a fake cane, He's….he has a sour future" Patch confessed.

"Who did you give it to?" Sky asked with a cold stare.

"Team VRSZ and then they gave it to Sneachta" Patch sighed.

"How could you…? I can't believe you did that! My own cat?! I thought you were loyal to me" I said, darkly.

Patch hung his head in shame.

-Back in the Volume 5 era-

Green was on the boat with Blake and the other faunus as it got closer to Mistral.

"Green, rendezvous to Disney Castle. You will be assigned your next mission but please leave Remnant before someone from Salem's group spots you!" Oswald's voice warned him.

"Guys, I have to go. Nova, Nuri; take over from me ok?" Green suggested.

They nodded as Green used a portal to escape Remnant in time.

"Nuri, you keep an eye on everyone here. I'm going to go on ahead to assess the area" Nova stated.

"Good luck" Nuri stated.

Nova nodded and then got out a speedboat to get Mistral faster.

"Good luck, Nova" Sienna whispered.

-Back in Disney Castle-

"I'm sorry, I wanted to find a way to help them more by getting someone else to help indirectly" Patch whispered.

"Someone stole my scroll and we ended up in the black market near the Criminals' meeting place; Then I made the deal and stole the cane. They'll probably do the rest when we're not there" he added, softly.

I clenched my fist.

"Patch, I love you buddy, but this is not what a knight would do. We need to have some time part, so I'm not going to speak to you until you make up for what you've done" I stated in a strained voice as tears began to swell up.

"I understand, Grace. I….saw part of this coming" Patch admitted, quietly.

Then he fell silent as Green appeared to join us.

"Once the Rouges arrive, you will go forth on your keepers' mission but first! Grace, after the wedding, you'll be going to the world of the 'Seven deadly sins' to make sure its safe on your own while Green will be going to Drake City to keep an eye on Necrafa leading up to the new year on a solo mission. The rest of you will help set up for Christmas and New Year's Eve when they are on those solo missions" Oswald explained.

"Understood, sir but….how will this keeper mission work?" Bernice asked.

"You get to go inside a book" Mickey winked.

"Oh, and Patch. Your punishment will be to stay on the castle grounds and help everyone with their tasks" Oswald added.

"Yes, sir" Patch muttered, sadly.

Oswald got a private call and cleared his throat.

"Guys, Danyal has decided to wait for the new year to uncover the mystery of her blank book. So, the Rouges are available for the next mission" Oswald confirmed.

"Guys, head to the Disney Archives. The Rouges will meet you there. We're going to keep an eye on Remant's timeline due to what Patch did and we're aware that Nora knew about this act as well" Mickey ordered.

Everyone but Patch nodded as we headed off through the corridors.

"I hope the timeline wasn't damaged too badly because of this" Oswald sighed as he and Mickey looked through the screen onto Volume 5 remnant on the night of the attack with the other monitors showing other points in time for RWBY's timeline.

-Back in the Volume 5 era-

Later that night…..

-Third person POV-

The full moon (which was in pieces this time) illuminated the night sky above Haven Academy.

On the school grounds, Qrow led Team RNJR, Weiss, Yang and Oscar Pine followed close behind. Ruby stopped and looked up to admire Haven's CCT tower, before following the rest of the group to a nearby building. They entered the building and were almost immediately greeted by Leonardo Lionheart, who was standing on a terrace at the top of the stairs that was being held up by a white goddess statue with golden chains.

"Why hello. Thank you for... coming. (nervously) There… seems to be more of you than last time." Lionheart greeted them with a very nervous chuckle.

Qrow and the rest of the group stopped to look up at Lionheart.

"Eh, you know what they say, "The more the merrier." So, what's going on with the council?" Qrow asked.

"Why… did you bring your weapons?" Lionheart asked, suspiciously.

"What? Leo, we're Huntsmen. You okay?" Qrow questioned in surprise.

"Of course! Of course, sorry. Just haven't had my evening coffee." Lionheart replied in a jumpy fashion.

"Look, it's nice to see you, but we got work to do. Are we getting support from the council or not?" Qrow insisted, cautiously.

While the two talked, Yang noticed from the corner of her eye a black raven perched on a balcony railing.

"Mom?" Yang questioned.

Everyone's attention turned to the bird.

It flew away just as Qrow shot at it, but he missed. The bird flew down behind Lionheart, transforming into Raven Branwen, donning her mask. Everyone glared at her.

"Raven…" Ruby said, gravely.

"They… they really are magic…" Nora realised in surprise.

"If you're going to shoot me, shoot me. That was insulting." Raven stated while taking off her mask.

"What are you doing here?!" Qrow demanded.

"I could ask you the same thing. You've been scheming, little brother. Planning to attack your own sister." Raven replied, matter-of-factually as she came down the stairs.

"Leo… what have you done?!" Qrow cried.

"I…" Lionheart began.

"Leo did what any sane person would in his position - he looked at all the information he had in front of him, assessed the situation, and made a choice. And it seems you all have too." Raven stated.

"You have the Spring Maiden." Qrow said, angrily.

"I do." Raven confirmed, calmly.

"Then hand her over and let's work together! We can beat Salem!" Qrow exclaimed.

"All that time spent spying for Ozpin and you still have no idea what you're dealing with. There is no beating Salem!" Raven insisted.

"You're wrong. We've done things that most people would call impossible, and I know the only reason we were able to do it is because we didn't do it alone! We had people to teach us, people to help us, we had each other. Work with us. At least I know we'll have a better chance if we try together. Please." Ruby begged as she held out her hand.

Raven glared at it.

"You sound just like your mother." She stated before she promptly drew her sword and created a portal with her Semblance.

From the portal, a fireball was launched and hit Ruby square in her torso which caused her to land several feet back.

"Ruby!" Yang cried with concern as she ran to help her.

Then Cinder stepped out of the portal.

"Hello boys and girls." She greeted them, casually.

She was then joined by Vernal, Emerald and Mercury as they too stepped out from the portal.

"Cinder…" Ruby said, darkly while glaring.

Cinder and her group lined up alongside Raven, while the rest gasped.

"C'mon guys, is that any way to greet your old friends?" Mercury asked, in a mocking tone.

Yang growled at him.

"Everybody, stay calm." Qrow stated as he held his hand out in front of the teens.

Suddenly they heard the doors open behind.

"Oh no…" Oscar said, worriedly.

Nova snuck in with her semblance as she had extra bombs equipped on her.

Hazel closed the doors behind him as he entered the room.

"The White Fang is prepping demolition and securing the school grounds. No one's getting in, and no one's getting out." Hazel reported, in a threatening manner.

Outside, a White Fang soldier was placing a bomb on the CCT tower with more bombs all primed set by more White Fang soldiers. Adam Taurus looked on as they were at work.

"Once the charges are set, move back to perimeter watch. Tonight, Haven falls." Adam ordered as he then smiled evilly.

Back inside, everyone watched Hazel slowly approach them. They turned their attention back to Cinder.

"Raven, tell me… how long have you been with them?" Qrow asked, with anguish.

"Aww, don't take it personally, little bird. Your sister was a recent addition. The lion on the other hand… Entrance into the Vytal Festival was a real treat, but Leonardo's been sending Salem all sorts of information for a very, very long time. Isn't that right, professor?" Cinder replied, mockingly.

"Stop it…" Lionheart remarked in shame.

"It was you… you sit on the Mistral Council. You had information on every Huntsman and Huntress in the Kingdom, and you gave it all to her." Qrow realised out loud in shock.

"I—" Lionheart began.

"I couldn't find any of them, because you let her kill them!" Qrow cried.

Lionheart didn't respond yet his sad face said it all.

"Aw now, don't beat yourself up about it, Lionheart, I'm sure Tyrian and Hazel would've found them on their own eventually." Cinder stated with a remorseless smile.

"What is wrong with you? How can you be so broken inside… to take so many lives, and then come here and rub it in our faces like it's something to be proud of?!" Jaune cried as all of his anger that had been building up since Pyrrha's death had reached a breaking point.

"Jaune…" Nora began with concern.

"All with that damn smile on your face!" Jaune exclaimed with rage as tears streamed down his face.

The rest of the group drew their weapons.

"Everybody, stay calm!" Qrow cried as he held out hands between the teens and Cinder's group.

Cinder just glared.

"I'm gonna make you pay for what you did! Do you hear me?!" Jaune exclaimed.

"Kid!" Qrow yelled in a warning tone.

"Well?! SAY SOMETHING!" Jaune shouted.

There was short pause before Cinder decided to speak.

She turned to him with an uncaring look.

Cinder: "Who are you again?" She asked, nonchalantly.

In response, Jaune transformed Crocea Mors to its two-handler form and advanced forward. Cinder summoned an obsidian scimitar and blocked Jaune's attack.

"Jaune!" Ruby cried as she leapt into the air, but a chain wrapped around her and she was pulled to ground by Emerald.

"You're not getting near her." Emerald stated, grimly.

Jaune was then pushed back by Cinder and the two begin their duel. Yang ran forward to join the fight, but Mercury landed in front of her.

"Hey there, blondie. I'm thinking you owe me an apology for my leg, don't ya think?" Mercury teased.

Yang growled and used Ember Celica to project herself forward.

"Take out the heiress. Don't bother wasting your power, she's not worth it." Raven ordered Vernal.

She then drew her sword as Qrow used his sword to lock blades with his sister.

"Running away was one thing, but this… you've crossed the line!" Qrow exclaimed.

"Sorry, brother. Sometimes family disappoints you like that." Raven remarked.

"We're not family anymore." Qrow stated, grimly.

"Were we ever?" Raven asked.

"I thought so, but I guess I was wrong." Qrow replied, soberly.

The two then proceeded with their fight, while Vernal confronted Weiss.

"Let's see what the Schnee name really means." Vernal challenged as she drew her weapons while Weiss held Myrtenaster in a en garde stance.

"I'm more than a name." Weiss remarked.

"Hm, prove it." Vernal stated.

Weiss activated a glyph below her and projected herself forward to fight the Spring Maiden.

Meanwhile, Oscar snuck up the stairs to Lionheart while Hazel confronted Ren and Nora, who held up their weapons defensively.

While everyone was distracted, Nova planted bombs in the corners of the room so the CCT tower would still fall as planned.

"I don't wish to fight either of you." Hazel stated.

"But we will if you're with her!" Nora cried.

"Very well, then." Hazel said as he cracked his knuckles and rushed towards them.

As Lionheart watched the fights going on, he then noticed Oscar walking up behind him.

"Young man, I don't know who you are or what you think you're doing, but for your sake, I suggest you leave. Now." Lionheart suggested, cautiously.

Oscar defiantly remains stationary before taking a few more steps toward Lionheart.

"I'm warning you!" Lionheart cried as he held out his wrist-mounted weapon, while Oscar prepared to draw something from behind him.

Lionheart's weapon was a wrist-mounted shield with several Dust containers beneath a cross, from which he can conjure glyphs to fire combined Dust projectiles such as flaming rocks.

When inactive, it took the form of a bracer with a large cross on Leonardo's left arm and contained at least eight different Dust variants, including Fire, Earth, Ice, Lightning and Gravity Dust. When a type of Dust is selected prior to discharging a shot, the stone in the centre changed colour according to the type chosen at the time of each shot with the ability of firing shots rapidly.

"That's enough!" Lionheart cried as he selected the red stone on his weapon which fired a flaming rock at Oscar, who held out his arms in front of him defensively as the attack exploded. Oscar was unscathed, though his Aura shimmered as he continued to proceed up the steps and draws his cane.

"Ozpin?" Lionheart asked in shock as his eyes widened.

"Not quite." Oscar replied, rushing forward as his attacks force Lionheart on the defensive.

"This can't be… I knew you would be back, but… you made it here! You found Qrow! How?" Lionheart asked, in surprise.

 **Ozpin: (mentally) Leo… what happened to you?**

"Wait. You can't have had this form for long. You're… not really Ozpin right now. Boy. Child. If I deliver you to Salem, she'll have to be pleased with me, and I can finally get out of all of this! I can finally be free!" Lionheart cried as his tail came out from his jacket.

Lionheart, now determined, prepped his weapon again.

"What do I do?" Oscar asked.

 **Ozpin: (dryly) Fight.**

Oscar proceeded forward.

Meanwhile, Weiss leapt around on her glyphs, dodging Vernal's weapons as she threw them like boomerangs. Weiss was then forced on the defensive and created a large ice wall. She then stabbed Myrtenaster into the ground as her Arma Gigas summon crawled out of her glyph. Suddenly, a large beam destroyed the ice wall as well as the Arma Gigas before it could be fully summoned.

One of Vernal's weapons knocked Weiss back several feet.

"Don't think I'm going to let you take the easy way out." Vernal stated as she caught her weapon.

On the other part of the hall, Jaune was knocked to the ground.

"I'm starting to remember you, you're the dense one that can't tell when he's out of his league." Cinder stated while chuckling mercilessly.

Jaune got back up and clashed blades with Cinder again.

Ruby watched them fight, but was snapped out of her distraction by Emerald. She then transformed her weapons into their revolver forms and fired at Ruby, who twirled around Crescent Rose blocking Emerald's shots.

"Why are you doing this?! Salem's—" Ruby began.

"I don't care about Salem! But I owe Cinder everything. You want to fight her that bad? Be my guest." Emerald confessed.

She then activated her hallucination Semblance, creating a wall of fire which Cinder emerged from and charged at Ruby. Suddenly, Cinder's form disappeared, while Emerald tripped Ruby. Ruby fired a bullet that narrowly missed Weiss, who was blocking Vernal's shots with Myrtenaster. Weiss attempted to summon, but Vernal was too quick and prevents her from doing so.

Eventually Weiss managed to launch Vernal out of the way and prepared to summon again.

Suddenly, Vernal appeared in front of her and landed an attack that depleted Weiss' aura as Weiss let out a pained scream. Jaune heard her scream and looked in her direction as tears welled up in his eyes.

"Are you going to let her die too?" Cinder asked.

"Stop messing with me!" Jaune cried.

"If that's what you want…" Cinder trailed off, playfully.

Cinder then ignited her scimitar, which is now fully coated in flames. Cinder and Jaune proceed forward to clash. Ruby looked behind her and noticed this. She briefly thought back to the moment when Pyrrha Nikos died, and her eyes started to shine bright again.

"NOOOOOOOOOO!" Ruby cried as a bright light engulfed the area, but died down when Ruby was knocked unconscious in her head by Emerald.

Suddenly, Cinder fell to her knees, holding her arm in pain. She looked up, and barely missed Jaune's attack as it chipped her mask that concealed the left side of her face. As Cinder moved out of the way, Jaune tripped and fell.

Cinder got back up enraged, activating her Maiden power while doing so.

She then stepped on top of Jaune to hold him down.

"Did you think you actually had a chance against me?! You?!" Cinder cried in rage.

Jaune struggled to reach for his weapon while Cinder calmed herself and deactivated her Maiden power.

"You're just a failure with a death wish." Cinder stated.

"If I die buying them time, then it's worth it. They're the ones that matter." Jaune remarked while he struggled against her.

Cinder looked to Jaune's comrades as they fought against their respective foes, before smiling evilly back down to him.

"You think so?" Cinder questioned.

She then notices Weiss get knocked back several feet away, and begins to slowly proceed toward her while she conjures an obsidian spear.

"No… (he helplessly watched while Cinder continued to advance towards Weiss) NOOOOOOO!" Jaune cried.

Cinder threw the spear and it impaled Weiss through her abdomen. She gasped in shock as everyone stopped their fighting and stared in shock as well. The spear then disintegrated as Weiss went motionless and slumped forward.

The spear had caused her to fall into a deep sleep as she was gravely injured.

"WEISS!" Jaune cried.

Cinder was smirking as Jaune quickly got up and ran past Cinder. Oscar watched Jaune approach and pick up the unconscious Weiss from his position. He then looked over to the unconscious Ruby Rose.

Enraged, he smacked Leo with his cane, causing him to fall down the stairs like a cardboard box and into Hazel, who remained unfazed as Lionheart fell to the ground. Oscar quickly ran over to Ruby, with Nora joining him.

"Ruby, get up! Get up! We need you!" Oscar pleaded.

Hazel picked up Lionheart by his collar, lifting him off the floor.

"You're lettin' that boy make a fool of you." Hazel stated, gravely.

"That's not just a boy! It's Ozpin. (Hazel's eyes widened when he said this) He's already reincarnated!" Lionheart cried.

Hazel dropped Lionheart and looked over to Oscar, who was still trying to nudge Ruby to wake her up. He then noticed Ozpin's cane being held in the young farm boy's hand.

"Ozpin?" Hazel asked.

Suddenly, the usual calm demeanour of Hazel slowly turned to infuriated. Ruby stirred for a bit.

"Ruby! You—" Oscar began.

"OZPIN!" Hazel cried.

Oscar looked up.

 **Ozpin: (mentally) Oh no…**

"You thought you could hide from ME?!" Hazel cried as he ripped his coat off, and then grabbed a two pairs of lightning Dust crystals from a couple of pouches on his legs.

"You'll pay for what you did, you'll die over and over again!" Hazel yelled in a fit of rage as he stabbed the lightning Dust into his arms, with his blood vessels turning yellow and popping out from his skin as well as having some lightning coat them. His eyes glowed yellow, and he let out an intimidating roar.

Oscar slowly backed away, holding his cane up cautiously.

"Do- do we fight?" Oscar asked in uncertainty.

 **Ozpin: (afraid) No, run!**

Hazel leapt forward to charge into Oscar, but Qrow pushed him out of the way in time. Qrow transformed his sword into its scythe form while Cinder watched. Raven and Vernal walked to her sides.

"Ozpin is here?!" Cinder asked while seething.

"Is that a problem?" Raven asked.

"I'm not sure, but right now we got the upper hand. Let's not waste it. Leo! Open the path to the vault!" Cinder stated.

Lionheart got back up and approached the white goddess statue in the room. He took out his pocket watch and placed it in a small niche on the statue. The hands on the watch gradually spun faster and the statue lowered. Yang watched the situation in front of her before looking to Jaune and Ren as they tended to Weiss, and then over to Nora who was still trying to wake Ruby up. Nora looked over to Yang.

"Stop them! We've got your team covered!" Nora yelled.

Yang lingered a bit before heeding Nora's advice, but she got kicked to the ground by Mercury who then joined by Emerald.

"You wanna get to them? You're going to have to get through all of us." Emerald stated, coldly as she used her Semblance to create multiple copies of Mercury, which surrounded Yang.

Meanwhile, Jaune used his hands to apply pressure on Weiss' wound, while Ren held her wrist checking her pulse.

"Ren, talk to me!" Jaune cried, desperately.

"This is bad." Ren said, sorrowfully as he shook his head sadly.

Jaune's eyes widened in horror.

"No, no, no, no, not again! Weiss, c'mon, please!" Jaune begged.

Meanwhile, Vernal stepped onto the platform leading down to the vault.

"Make sure they leave Ruby alive. This won't take long." Cinder ordered to Lionheart.

Nova snuck onto the platform in order to set up a few more bombs near the vault and then close to the CCT tower

Cinder stepped onto the platform. Raven looked back a bit as she heard her daughter fighting vainly, shaking her head before she stepped on the platform too. The platform then started to go down.

Oscar was currently dodging out of the way as Hazel slammed his fist into the ground.

 **Ozpin: Oscar.**

"No!" Oscar yelled.

Oscar dodged another attack from Hazel.

 **Ozpin: Oscar!**

"I told you, no!" Oscar reaffirmed in defiance.

Oscar got punched back by Hazel several feet into a column.

 **Ozpin: Please, let me take over! I can handle him!**

"You told me I needed to fight for myself! (standing back up) So I will." Oscar stated in confidence.

 **Ozpin: This is not your fight!**

"What does that mean? Why is he so upset with us?" Oscar asked.

"He didn't tell you my tale, did he, boy? (he approached Oscar menacingly) I thought you looked familiar, to think that evil was inside you when our paths first crossed. (he held his fists in the air) Your blood won't be on my hands, it'll be on his." Hazel stated in his distorted voice due to the dust in his bloodstream.

Qrow jumped in the way to block Hazel's attack, but he slammed his fist into the ground, the shockwave knocking both him and Oscar back. They both got back up as Qrow engaged Hazel in battle.

"What was he talking about?" Oscar asked, in confusion.

"Tell him, Ozpin! Tell him how you KILLED HER!" Hazel cried.

"Her?" Oscar asked in a lost voice.

 **Ozpin: Gretchen Rainart was Hazel's sister. Despite her brother's wishes, she enrolled at Beacon Academy to become a Huntress and tragically lost her life on a training mission. Hazel… holds me responsible. Please, let me fight. I know Hazel. He's wounded in a way that cannot be healed.**

Oscar looked shocked at the revelation.

"There's definitely more to that story" he muttered to himself.

"You know now! (tossing Qrow aside) You can forgive me for what I'm about to do." Hazel stated once he saw Oscar's expression.

"Did she know? Did she know the risk of being a Huntress?" Oscar asked.

"She was only a child! She wasn't ready!" Hazel cried.

"She made a choice! A choice to put others before herself! (holding his cane up defensively) So do I." Oscar assured.

Hazel just glared at him.

"Then you've chosen death!" Hazel yelled.

Oscar glared back with determination.

 **Ozpin: I'm sorry.**

"What?" Oscar asked in surprise.

Oscar's eyes glowed and his body fell to the ground as Ozpin forcefully took over him. Ozpin looked up, and Hazel looked back at him, enraged.

"OzzzzPIIIIIIIIN!" Hazel bellowed.

Meanwhile, Jaune and Ren continued tending to Weiss.

"She's hardly breathing. I… I don't know what we can do…" Ren said, solemnly.

Both of them looked down to Weiss as she struggled to breathe, before suddenly stopping.

"No, it wasn't supposed to be like this! Please! (voice breaking) I can't lose anyone else…" Jaune lamented.

Jaune sadly closed his eyes. Suddenly, a faint shimmering sound was heard as a white aura started to coat over Weiss' body. Weiss suddenly gasped for breath again.

Hazel and Ozpin fought each other intensely. Lionheart tried to intervene by launching another attack from his weapon, but was stopped by Qrow. The two of them fought each other, with Qrow blocking Lionheart's projectiles.

Ozpin and Hazel engaged against each other again. Hazel tried to smash him with his fists, but Ozpin was too fast for him.

Eventually, Ozpin managed to knock Hazel down on all fours. Ozpin then twirled his cane and prepared to deliver the finishing blow, but Hazel roared and smashed his fists into the ground, creating another lightning shockwave.

Meanwhile, Weiss started to gasp and breathe normally again as the white aura encoating her continued to glow.

"Huh? Wha- what's happening?" Jaune asked in surprise.

"Weiss!" Ruby yelled as Nora helped her up on her feet and then quickly ran over to her teammate's side.

"What happened? What's going on?!" Ruby cried.

"I think she's going to be okay! She seems to be stabilizing." Ren reassured her while smiling.

With Weiss breathing again, Ruby smiled, relieved that her friend's life was not endangered anymore.

She then heard her sister struggling and looked over her shoulder to see Yang was getting knocked back by Mercury. Yang charged forward, but Mercury's form disappeared as a result of another one of Emerald's Semblance hallucinations.

Emerald then created an image of Raven, which Yang was hesitant to attack. Yang then blocked another attack from Mercury, but she was then knocked down again.

Ruby then looked over to Oscar fighting Hazel, with the latter's attack becoming too wild and unpredictable for the young boy. Oscar was then hit by one of Lionheart's projectiles, and held his shoulder in pain. Hazel was about to punch at Oscar again, but Qrow pushed Oscar out of the way and took the blow in his back, launching him upwards. Ruby then lifted Jaune's hands up to see that Weiss' wound had closed.

"Whatever you're doing, don't stop!" Ruby urged.

"I won't." Jaune stated, calmly.

"Good. Oscar needs help." Ruby pointed out.

"I'm on it." Ren replied.

"Jaune and Weiss still need cover!" Ruby urged.

Ren took out StormFlower, while Nora approached his side holding Magnhild.

"No one's gonna touch 'em." Nora stated with confidence while smiling.

"Okay, make it happen, RNJR!" Ruby exclaimed as she smiled back and then stood up while transforming Crescent Rose into its scythe form and flipped over.

She landed to her sister's side, knocking Emerald back. Emerald's Semblance copies of Mercury then disappeared, reforming back into the main Mercury.

"Thanks, sis. (standing back up) You okay?" Yang asked.

"No, I'm angry." Ruby replied, darkly as she proceeded forward to engage Mercury in battle alongside Yang.

The sisters switched positions and leapt forward to take on their opponents. Yang knocked into Emerald while Ruby took on Mercury. He used his left boot to kick Crescent Rose out of her hands.

"Uh oh, what're you gonna do now?" Mercury asked, sarcastically.

Mercury tried to throw a left cross, but Ruby ducked and headbutted him upwards - in a similar manner to what Ozpin taught her what to do. Mercury stepped a few feet backwards and held his nose in pain, before growling at Ruby.

"Whatever it takes to shut you up." Ruby replied as she picked up her weapon.

Meanwhile, Cinder, Raven and Vernal were riding the platform down to the vault with Nova in the background, unnoticed by them for the time being.

"Are you nervous, girl? The first Maiden in - why, I'm not sure anyone knows how many years - is about to open a vault. I would say it's quite an exciting time. Don't you feel honoured?" Cinder asked, curtly.

"No, I'm not concerned with any of this. All I care about is my tribe - my family. This is a burden, not an honour." Vernal replied, coldly.

"(chuckles) You've conditioned her quite well, Raven." Cinder complemented.

As the three continued to ride down the platform, they saw the vault under Haven Academy - a massive cavern with a large tree that has glowing orange flowers.

The platform reached the bottom, and the gate protecting the vault was lowered into the ground.

"Hm, it's certainly grander than Beacon's. I wonder what the extra effort was for." Cinder said, curiously.

"Can we please not linger?" Raven complained.

"After you." Cinder offered, courteously.

Vernal stepped off the platform first, followed by Cinder, and then Raven, the latter putting her mask back on.

-Raven's POV-

I followed Vernal and Cinder towards the Relic chamber.

As a white Fleur De Lis on the floor glowed with the circle glowing blue as two more circles with the same symbol glowed in a straight line to the Relic chamber's door.

The tree's flowers then glowed even more, and it's petals gently fell and floated around the vault.

One petal fell into Vernal's hand.

"Having fun?" Cinder asked, playfully.

Vernal glares back at Cinder as the petal in her hand dissolves into particles.

"Vernal, stay focused." I said in stern voice.

"Oh, come now, Raven, let her enjoy this. It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience." Cinder reasoned.

"How does this work?" Vernal asked.

"Once the Spring Maiden places her hand on the door, it will open. For you - and only you. Then I will walk into the vault, and retrieve the Relic. No one else. Is that clear?" Cinder stated.

"Yes." Vernal replied, coldly.

"It doesn't matter to us. Let's get this over with." I insisted.

"Alright then. Vernal, when you're ready." Cinder stated.

Vernal approached the golden door with a blue vine design.

I slowly reached for the hilt of my sword.

"You know, I've heard so many stories about you, Raven. They say you're a cunning leader, that you're strong, that you're clever." Cinder began as I stopped myself from getting my sword as she spoke.

Vernal hovered her fingertips close to the door.

"It's a shame that they're wrong…" Cinder finished as she then fired a blue, frost-like projectile from her hand.

"VERNAL!" I cried while reaching out but Cinder's attack froze me in place.

Vernal took her hand away from the door and took her weapons out on Cinder, but she was stabbed by something in her stomach. She looked down and noticed an elongated Grimm hand - similar to a Geist's - coming from Cinder's left arm.

"It's nothing personal, dear. (she approached Vernal) You're just not worthy of such power. (face to face with Vernal) But I am…" Cinder stated, over confidently in a menacing tone.

Vernal was pushed to the ground, and screamed out in pain as she struggled to get the Grimm hand out of her stomach.

I managed to make the ice coating begin to crack.

"So I will take… what is mine…" Cinder said, in a power-hungry way.

Eventually, Vernal stopped struggling, and went motionless and quiet.

Cinder smirked as she looked down on Vernal's body, but then realized that something was wrong.

"Wha- what is this? Where's the power?!" Cinder cried in confusion.

Then she heard ice crack from behind and turned around.

"You won't find it, because Vernal isn't the Spring Maiden… (took mask off) I am!" I announced.

I opened my eyes with a red flame-like effect glowing and trailing from them and looked at Cinder grimly.

-Third person POV-

While Jaune continued to heal Weiss, Nora suspected that Jaune unlocked his semblance, which allowed him to heal people. However, Jaune noted that he was not actually healing Weiss, just amplifying her Aura and not worrying about his own due to having a large amount of it.

Suddenly, Weiss opened up her eyes, stirring.

"Jaune?" Weiss asked.

Nora smiled before standing guard again.

Meanwhile, Lie Ren was taking on Hazel, who punched the former back into the wall.

Hazel then launched an electrical charge from his lightning-Dust enhanced arm, electrocuting Ren, causing him to scream in pain before falling to the ground.

"REN!" Nora yelled.

"Go! I've got her!" Jaune urged.

Nora nodded at him before proceeding forward.

"Jaune… what's happening?" Weiss asked, weakly.

"You took a heavy hit, you need to stay with me while the others fight." Jaune said, softly.

"That's… (sighs) … annoying." Weiss stated while rolling her eyes.

"Heh, good to have you back, Weiss." Jaune smiled.

Meanwhile, Qrow was knocked back into the wall and then fell to the ground next to the downed Ren, who struggled to get back up as well.

Ozpin used his cane to block flaming rocks being fired from Leo's weapon. Hazel charged forward and punched Ozpin several feet back.

"Hiding behind the face of a child? A monster like you must be stopped!" Hazel exclaimed.

Hazel made anger grunt as he prepared to attack again.

Nora charged at Hazel with a loud battle cry. She leapt into the air, but Hazel caught Magnhild and slammed Nora into the ground. Hazel then grabbed Nora's head, electrocuting her with his lightning Dust-enhanced arms. She screamed out in pain.

"How many more children must die for you?!" Hazel yelled.

Suddenly, Nora grabbed Hazel's wrist as her screams changed to determined yelling.

"Huh?" Hazel asked.

Nora, inadvertently enhanced by Hazel's electricity thanks to her Semblance, stood back up and flipped him over her shoulder. He rolled back several feet away. Nora then held Magnhild up defensively.

"His Semblance… he can block out pain. It's how he is able to handle injecting so much Dust into his body." Ozpin remarked to Nora.

Nora stared back at Hazel, who got back up.

"I don't need him to hurt…" Nora began, darkly.

Hazel screamed and charged forward again.

"I just need him to GO DOWN!" Nora cried as Hazel got hear her and prepped to swing Magnhild.

She then swung her hammer right into Hazel's chest, her counterattack launching him through the wall and outside onto Haven Academy's quad. Adam Taurus and White Fang soldiers looked on.

"What's going on in there?" A white fang soldier asked his leader.

"None of your concern…" Hazel replied, casually.

Adam and his followers stared in amazement as they watched Hazel get back up. He then took out a pair of red Dust crystals and stabbed them into his arms. He let out another roar as Ruby watched from inside the building. She then looked back to her friends and allies, all of them looking tired and worn out from the battle they've endured.

"Stay focused! Our friends are almost done here." Adam ordered.

Meanwhile near the CCT tower

Ilia in her shadow form was looking for the bombs that the white fang had planted when she was attacked by 'Blake'.

Ilia got out her whip and tried to strike her.

'Blake' blocked with her katana and switched the dust compartment to fire dust with a dial before blocking the attack.

Then she quickly got behind Ilia and knocked her out as quietly as possibly.

"Sienna, begin Phase 2" 'Blake' ordered into her scroll.

Then she switched the contacts.

"Akili, make sure the rest of the white fang are near the city for the big ambush" She instructed.

"We're on our way" Akili replied.

The line ended and 'Blake' changed back in Ilia before going back into the shadow in order to spy on Adam from afar.

Adam and his followers began to go back to work.

"ADAM!" a familiar voice cried which made them stop in their tracks.

They all looked up and saw Blake standing proudly on top of the roof of a nearby building.

"Blake?" Adam asked.

"Who is that?" Hazel wondered.

"Stand down!" Blake cried.

The White Fang soldiers aimed their firearms at her.

"Wait! (putting his hands up as the White Fang soldiers stood down, before laughing evilly) To think that I went through so much trouble to find you, only to have you deliver yourself to me." Adam gloated.

"This isn't what's right for the Faunus! Stop what you're doing and we can end this peacefully." Blake reasoned.

"You're wrong, Blake, and you can't stop us." Adam responded.

"No, I can't. Not by myself." Blake admitted.

"That's why she didn't come alone!" Sun cried.

Adam and his followers turned to the left in surprise as they saw Sun standing in front of a massive legion of Faunus all armed with blunt weaponry, their shields bared the old White Fang symbol.

"What?!" Adam cried.

"Who's there?" A white fang soldier asked.

They then turned to the right, and saw 'Ghira' leading another massive legion of Faunus.

"Your brothers and sisters." 'Ghira' replied.

One of the White Fang Soldiers lowered his weapon, recognizing one of the Faunus in the crowd.

"M- Mata?" that soldier asked, in shock.

Mata was the crowd holding a club and shield.

"Please… stop this…" Mata pleaded.

Adam and his followers looked all around them assessing the situation.

"Make no mistake, brothers! These are our enemies! And we will not let them ruin-" Adam began.

He was suddenly interrupted by a Mistral airship shining its searchlight down on himself and his group.

The Mistral police captain was on the airship with Kali.

"Adam Taurus, this is the Mistral Police Force! Lower your weapons and surrender peacefully." The mistral police captain announced on the ship announcer.

More Mistral airships arrived seconds later.

Back inside, Ruby knocked Emerald back a few feet. Emerald then hears the sounds of the Mistral airships as their searchlights shone through the windows. Everyone stopped what they were doing. Weiss leaned up as Jaune continued healing her.

"What's happening?" Weiss asked.

"I'm not sure. How are you feeling?" Jaune asked.

She sat back up.

"Better. (Weiss activated a summoning Glyph in her hand) Much better. Keep it up." Weiss replied, proudly with a small smile.

Back outside, Blake landed to the ground from the roof.

"How?! How did you do this?!" Adam exclaimed.

"Adam, it's over." Blake said, gravely.

Adam looked around as the crowds of Menagerie Faunus goy closer to him and his group. He then pulled out a detonator.

"Then it's over for all of us." Adam threatened.

"Adam! Remember me?" a voice cried.

He stopped and turned around as Sienna came out of the crowd to face him.

"I thought I killed you in cold blood" Adam remarked, icily.

"Well, you didn't, and I wasn't meant to die anyway. This is not what I wanted, and you know it. I still want peace even if I use violence sometimes" Sienna pointed out.

Adam growled.

"You have taken this too far, Adam and now you're getting justice" Sienna stated as her eyes narrowed in a serious way.

Adam readied his sword.

"You were willing to kill everyone even your FOLLOWERS to escape this mess YOU created! And remind me why you're doing this again" Sienna taunted.

"I am making humanity pay for WHAT THEY'VE DONE!" Adam exclaimed with outrage.

"And what was that deed that they did to you again?" Sienna whispered in his ear.

Adam's anger began to boil over.

"What do we do?!" Adam yelled at Hazel.

"This… is your business. Not mine. Fix it." Hazel stated, nonchalantly while cracking his knuckles.

Adam just glared back at him before facing Sienna.

Sienna smiled and activated her semblance to enact 'phase two' of the plan.

She rushed at Adam and he blocked her attack with his sword.

The two of them slashed towards each other with their weapons at a fast pace.

Adam managed to slash Sienna right cheek as her dark orange aura flashed for a second.

They both huffed as they stopped fighting.

Adam got his scroll out.

"VRSZ, tell the criminals that they can attack Mistral now" He ordered in a hushed voice.

"Roger that" Violet replied as the connection cut.

He put his scroll away before turning to Blake.

"I told you, Adam. It's over…" Blake echoed.

Adam, not having any of it, yelled out in frustration and charged forward toward Blake. He took out Wilt from Blush to slash at her, but Blake used her Semblance to get out of the way and she knocked him down by balling her fists together and hitting his back. Adam fell to the ground on his knees.

"KILL THEM!" Adam barked.

And thus, the battle between both Faunus groups began. The White Fang soldiers drew their weapons and attempted to fire at the Mistral airships. Sun leapt around twirling Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang in its staff form, while Ilia fought with her whip.

Hazel observed the situation in front of him, but was then suddenly impaled by a white, glowing stinger. He was then pulled back inside the building and sat up to see that Weiss was back on her feet with a summoned Lancer flying above her.

As she prepared to fight again, she gasped as she noticed someone entering the building. Yang and Ruby looked back as well and gasped when they see Blake, her eyes widening as she sees all of her teammates in the same place.

"Yang?" Blake asked.

Yang stared back at her in disbelief like she was in a trance of emotions.

"Yang! Go!" Ruby yelled while point at the vault's entrance which snapped Yang out of her trance.

Yang ran forward.

"No!" Emerald cried as she tried to stop Yang from leaving by reaching out for her left arm but missed as Yang kicked her to the ground while running.

Mercury grabbed her prosthetic arm which made Yang's eyes briefly turn red before turning back to normal.

She detached her arm and continued forward, causing Mercury to lose his balance for a bit. She jumped down the hole leading to the vault. Emerald and Mercury attempted to give chase, but they were stopped by an ice wall that suddenly appeared in front of them.

They turned around and see Weiss with her Lancer summon as she prepared to fight the both of them. Jaune watched from his position and smiled. Ruby then turned back around to look at Blake, and both noded at each other as the cat Faunus went back outside to join the battle.

Back down in the vault, Cinder looked to the motionless Vernal.

"Vernal was a decoy the whole time. (turning her attention back to Raven) The last Spring Maiden must've trusted you a great deal before she died. I bet that was a mistake…" Cinder said, bitterly.

Raven growled and shot her sword out of her hilt, and the two Maidens began their battle against each other. They struck at each other with a flurry of vicious sword strikes. The two eventually clashed, the strike broke Cinder's weapon and the shrapnel hurting her Grimm arm. She held her arm in pain.

"Aura can't protect your arm, it's Grimm." Raven stated.

Cinder pulled the shrapnel out of her arm and faced Raven again.

"You turned yourself into a monster just for power" Raven chatised.

"Look who's talking…" Cinder remarked as she created another sword while glaring.

The two proceeded forward to clash again. During their bout, Raven quickly switched between the various coloured blades in her hilt to counter Cinder's various weapons that she conjured. As their battle intensified, Cinder conjured a giant flaming sword while Raven used her Maiden powers to create a massive ice sword.

Nova snuck to the lift and waited for the fight to end.

 _Hopefully, back-up will get here at the right time so I can finish this_ off she thought.

In the background as Raven and Cinder fought at high speed a song played in the background, seemingly addressed to Cinder.

Their clash created a massive shockwave that shook the cavern, with the combatants above ground also feeling the tremors. Due to their battle, the giant stalactites hanging from above started to drop. Both Maidens jumped back to dodge out of the way. As Raven prepared for her next strike, Cinder's Grimm arm elongated through the dust and grabbed Raven's neck.

As the Grimm arm slowly drained her powers, Raven noticed something and smirked. She sent out a frost-like attack from her palm and froze Cinder's feet in place as more boulders from the cave in crashed down on her. Raven, now free from her grip, did a massive leap into the air and landed on top of one of the falling stalactites. She looked down and noticed Cinder survived the cave in, using her fire powers to fly up to her. The two fought their way around the falling stalactites. Eventually the stalactites landed back on the ground, and both Maidens wereon their knees, panting in exhaustion while their Auras shimmered as they were about to break.

"Had enough yet?" Raven asked as she got back up.

"Shut up!" Cinder yelled.

"If you were stronger or more clever, then maybe… you'd remember to watch your back!" Raven remarked.

Cinder glared at her, wondering what the Spring Maiden was talking about, but then gasped as she looked behind her and noticed the dying Vernal aiming one of her weapons at her and fired.

Cinder blocked the attack, but Raven quickly dashed up behind her and landed a devastating lightning attack on her face, shattering her mask and revealing the heavily scarred left side.

The sheer force of the attack sent Cinder over the edge of the vault's walkway and above the abyss. She stared back up at Raven, who used her powers to freeze the Fall Maiden into an ice statue. Cinder's frozen body fell down into the dark depths of the abyss, fading from view.

Raven looked down as she watched her enemy continue plunging, before deactivating her Maiden powers and sighed.

"Thank you, Vernal." Raven said, solemnly as she sadly looked over to the now-deceased Vernal, whose eyes remained open on her lifeless body.

Raven walked over to Vernal's corpse and gently closed her eyes. Raven then proceeded to the Relic chamber's doorway. She activated her Maiden powers again and began the process to unlock the chamber. Eventually, the door opened up, and on the other side, a massive desert was shown with a path leading to the Relic of Knowledge, which rested on a stone pedestal.

Just as she was about to enter the chamber, Raven heard the sound of Ember Celica and turned around to glare at her daughter landing behind her. Yang did a three-point landing pose and stood back up to face her mother.

To be continued-

 **Next time on RWBY AU,**

 **It will be the end of Volume 5 my way but this will not be the end of my story.**

 **And don't worry, Neo have a bigger presence in my version of 'Volume 6' with Team VRSZ.**

 **I'm going to continue working on this in late June after all my exams are over.**

 **See ya next time, guys!**

 **Grace, out!**


	9. Chapter 9

_Chapter 9- A bombshell revelation, the team reunion and a small victory_

 **There are some references to one of the songs from Chapter 14 and some dialogue from that episodes. they belong to Rooster Teeth. I'm just borrowing them for my story.**

 ** _Taupe means Dark Grey._**

 ** _In this chapter, Ozpin will reference 'The Witch and the wizard' by Noir from the RWBY Wiki Seen here: aminoapps c/ rwby/ page/ blog/ the-witch-and-the-wizard/ 422o_0rbCYu2za 8EWY4x6B72xoEBEEvKnVm._**

 ** _Ozpin's bad deeds of sending students to their deaths for the sake of defeating Salem is referenced in Yang's confrontation with Ozpin. The post 'A smaller, more honest soul- sacrifice' by Lady Reed is the reference at this part found here: c/rwby/ page/ blog/ a-smaller -more- honest -soul- sacrifice/ vdd5_oQDCnuwk5mPlJ6MV4wYEZQ744d1gX6._**

 ** _Salem's plan regarding the relics from a post by Schatten will be referenced at the end of this chapter. This post can be found here: aminoapps c/ rwby/ page/ blog/ how-will- salem- use- the- relics- to-win/ 7eeX_pE6hPu8VP4Zn7r8xjGeY3R3va3L5Wq_**

 ** _I'm just borrowing it because it's a very cool idea and I wish to try and expand it in my story;)_**

 ** _Oh and New Dreamer helped me come with the name 'Black Talons' :D_**

 ** _Enjoy!_**

 _The battle between the White Fang and the Menagerie Faunus as well as the Mistral police force continued outside on the quad of Haven Academy._

The quad was a large, spacious area just outside Haven Academy toward the grand hall. There was a fountain in the centre with a few shrubbery, wooden benches and lamp posts lined up along the perimeter and the two CCT towers were on the far right surrounded by forests.

The sound of clashing weapons filled the air.

 _The soldiers and faunus Menagerie citizens clashed with their blue shields and opposing red labelled guns._

 _Sienna fought one of the bear faunus soldiers who wasn't Nuri and tackled him to the ground._

 _'Ghira' chased one of the soldiers away from the group as Nuri knocked them out to allow 'Ghira' to stop using his semblance and changed back to Ebony._

 _"Thanks, Nuri" Ebony heaved as she did her best to allow her aura to recover slowly._

 _ _One of the Mistral airships shone its searchlight on three White Fang soldiers.__

"Cease fire, immediately!" the Mistral policeman ordered over the ship speaker.

 _Three of the white fang soldiers tried to run away, but they were stopped by a combined group of Menagerie Faunus and Mistral policemen led by Ilia. Eventually, two of the White Fang soldiers dropped their weapons and held their hands in the air to surrender when they were surrounded._

 _The last White Fang soldier with dark brown animal ears tried to fire his weapon, but it was whipped out of his hands before he was tackled and restrained to the ground by Ilia._

"Thank you." The female rabbit faunus with brown bunny ears and brown eyes with a baton-looking weapon said while smiling.

 _Ilia looked at the rabbit Faunus and smiled and nodded back._

 _A mature adult hyena faunus with grey hyena ears wearing a grey white fang outfit and a white mask that mimicked the appearance of a spotted hyena arrived._

 _"Akili Taupe, at your service" She grinned._

 _"Great timing, Akili. When I give the signal, tell the others to come out understand?" Nuri stated._

 _Akili nodded._

 _On cue, Team VRSZ arrived with a majority of the criminals from the lower levels and led them in a attack at the Mistral police and Blake's peaceful army._

"Make sure they're all distracted!" Violet ordered as they began their part of the plan in the attack.

 _Elsewhere, Blake stood proudly over Adam, who was on his knees before standing back up._

"I'm going to make you regret ever coming back…" Adam stated while seething with rage.

"More police are on their way, Adam. Huntsmen too." Blake revealed.

"Still too afraid to face me on your own. Your army won't be enough, I ALWAYS have back up" Adam said, darkly while chuckling evilly.

"I'm here for Haven, not you." Blake stated, coldly.

 _Angered, Adam pointed Blush in front of Blake with Wilt in his left hand, while Blake drew Gambol Shroud._

"Heh, you are still afraid, and you should be. I've made powerful friends while you've been away." Adam pointed out.

"Oh yeah?" Sun asked in a taunting way.

 _Adam looked to his left as Sun approached him holding Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang in its staff form._

"Where?" Sun questioned.

"Tell me, does Blake make all of her classmates fight for her?" Adam asked as he pointed his Wilt blade at Sun.

"Nah, it's a volunteer gig. I'm just sayin', for someone who claims to have such great friends, there doesn't seem to be a lot of people here willing to fight for _you." Sun replied._

 _Adam looked around_ _seeing three of his followers surrendering to the overwhelming numbers of forces Blake brought with her while the group of criminals brought by team VRSZ took out one of the Mistral ships and Sienna fought Violet._

Violet was using her pair of kukris Enigma knives against Sienna.

These knives had four slots in their hilts for various uses: Fire to cloak the blades in flames and set things on fire, ice to transform the knives into icy swords, gravity dust for movement and wind dust.

She had throwing knives in her bag for long-range attacks.

Those Cheshire's Enigma throwing knives have various types of dust in the hilts for various effects (Fire dust as explosives, ice dust to freeze opponents or the area, lightning dust to electrocute enemies, Earth dust to create pillars of earth when the knife makes contact with any surface and work effectively as shields, Wind dust to create small bursts of wind to repel opponents, attacks, or used to help lift her high in the air and Gravity dust to keep enemies in one place and pull everything to its location).

Sienna activated her semblance and lashed out in swift strikes.

Violet managed to keep up with her fast-pace but had to wind dust to push her back so she could assess the situation.

So while Sienna was recovering from being blown back a few feet, Violet activated her semblance and turned invisible to get the upper hand on the former white fang leader.

 _The criminals were using weapons that reflected their status in Mistral and_ Sneachta was impressed by VRSZ's loyalty to Salem even if it was because of blackmail. Sneachta was monitoring the fight through surveillance cameras in the Mistral underground and planned to give Salem Ozpin's cane eventually. First he had to assemble his own organisation to rival Adam...

 _The first step to war is always small but vital. They're pretty good. This could help me form a counterpart to the white fang_ he thought to himself _as he sent a message to Watts about his idea._

 _A searchlight then shone down on Adam._

"You can try and make me regret coming here, Adam, but honestly… I've got more important things to deal with." Blake stated.

 _Adam let out a frustrated growl and swung his sword at Sun, but the monkey Faunus countered his attacks by swinging his shotgun nunchucks. Adam then blocked Blake's sword swings as she came at him, followed up by Adam getting knocked away by Sun. Adam bolted, with Sun giving chase. Adam ran away into the bushes and trees while Sun continued to pursue him, but Blake stopped him._

"Sun, wait!" Blake called.

"But he's getting away! We could take him!" Sun exclaimed.

"No, we can't. He wants to lure us away so he can pick us off. We need to protect the school and the people here. Besides… now he can see what it feels like to run away. ( _smiling_ ) Thank you." Blake stated as she sheathed her katana.

"Eh, we all need help sometimes." Sun replied with a smile.

 _"Nuri, Ebony. Come! I have a score to settle with Adam" Sienna called as she made Violet call a truce for her fight so she could chase after Adam before he got too far._

 _"You go ahead, I'll catch up!" Nuri called out._

 _Violet activated her semblance and followed them in secret._

 _The trio raced after Adam in hot pursuit of him into the forest._

"I hope they'll be ok" Blake said, worriedly.

"They have Ebony, I think they can keep up with Adam" Sun reassured her.

 _Sun's attention was then drawn to Haven's Great Hall where he and Blake saw their old friends and allies fighting off their enemies._

"I think there's a few people who could use yours." Sun pointed out.

 _He was about to run off to help the others when Blake gently grabbed him on the arm to stop him._

"Be careful." Blake warned him.

"No promises." Sun replied with a smile as he ran off and _Blake smiled at his last remark, before she too ran to finish the fight._

 _Back inside the Great Hall, Hazel launched fireballs from his fists with his fire-Dust enhanced arms at Weiss's summoned Queen Lancer. The Lancer dodged out of the way of the blasts._

 _Meanwhile, the remaining members of Team JNPR fended themselves from Mercury and Emerald's shots._

"You guys okay?" Jaune asked with concern.

 _Ren coughed while Nora groaned in exhaustion._

"Surviving…" Ren replied, weakly.

"I don't know how that big guy is still standing. He recharges his Aura faster than I've ever seen!" Nora exclaimed.

 _Ozpin (AKA Oscar's body) watched Qrow fly in with his bird form, before transforming back into his usual self._

"He's sheer willpower." Qrow observed while grunting in pain.

 _Ozpin took cover behind a nearby column._

"We just need to get him to his limit!" Ozpin cried,

 _The Queen Lancer summon was firing projectiles at Leo, who defended himself with his weapon. He then knocked the summon away with a flame torrent coming from his weapon._

 _Hazel used the opportunity to launch a combined fire and lightning attack which caused the Lancer summon to dissipate. Weiss stared in shock as her summon disappeared._

 _Suddenly, Blake jumped in and kicked Hazel to the ground before jumping next to Weiss and Ruby._

"Are you hurt?" Blake asked,

"N- No! I just remembered you being more of the quiet one." Weiss stammered in shock.

 _Hazel, Emerald, and Mercury slowly advanced toward the three of them._

"Not today." Blake stated, confidently as she _drew Gambol Shroud, while Ruby held up Crescent Rose._

"Alright. ( _holding Myrtenaster defensively_ ) Well, what's the plan, Ruby?" Weiss asked.

 _Ruby nodded. Lionheart tried to launch an attack on her, but Ruby shot at his shoulder which made his orange aura shimmer. Leo ran out of the room through the doors behind him in fear._

"You've gotta be kidding me…" Mercury said in distain as he watched Leo run away.

 _Hazel let out a fearsome roar, while Emerald and Mercury just watched him._

"Checkmate!" Ruby cried as _Blake and Weiss ran forward, followed closely behind by their leader._

 _Blake and Weiss worked together using ice dust on Blake's shadow clone and Weiss using a time glyph on Hazel to slow him so Ruby could find his weak spot fastest._

 _Blake used her regular shadow clones to get the upper hand on Mercury as he tried to figure which was the real Blake while using his wind attack from Vytal festival to uncover them all._

 _Weiss used lightening dust to strike her which injured her right side._

 _Ozpin watched their battle from afar._

 _"They need my help" he muttered._

 _He held his cane with both hands and his body glowed green as he tried to unlock the power in the cane in order to help the girls._

 _...but NOTHING happened._

 _He tried again. He got the same result._

 _Ozpin's eyes widened._

 _In that moment, Oscar managed to gain control again._

"My cane doesn't work? I don't have my real weapon!" Oscar realised in horror.

"Nora, why do Oscar have a fake cane?" Ren asked in a suspicious tone even though he was exhausted from fighting.

"Um, I may have been the one that covered for Patch when he 'borrowed' it" Nora replied, sheepishly.

"WHAT?!" Oscar cried.

"I sure wish we had that cat right now, he'd probably warn us that something disastrous is going to happen" Qrow sighed.

 **"Oscar, forget about the fake cane for a minute. I..." Ozpin began.**

"YOU! You took over me without CONSENT! That's like a metaphor for forcing me to have sex with a random person without asking! How could you?! I wanted to prove myself and you took that away from me! Am I just a VESSEL to you?!" Oscar cried.

 **"I had to intervene or we could have died. I couldn't just let you die, you're only like 14!" Ozpin replied in a concerned tone.**

"So tell me, Ozpin. Fill in the other blanks. Why do people think you're evil?" Oscar persisted.

 **"The academies were made to not only train future huntsmen but protect the relics as you know. But before that point, some of huntsmen during the time I was the wizard ventured into the Dragon-shaped island and never returned. I thought Humanity was doomed because more and more people tried to explore that Island and went 'MIA'. So I lost the will to care and lived in a cottage until the four girls who eventually became the first maidens found me. They restored my faith and hope in humanity. You see, I did try to show Salem the good in humanity but she wouldn't listen to me and declared war against me. Before the great war, I gave the relics to four guardians I trusted but Salem killed one of them when we used the relics' power on her and accidently damaged the moon in the process. That was when the brother gods cursed me for failing to kill , I helped create the academies and well some huntsmen went on missions they weren't ready for and died tried, while some died during the entrance Indication when I launched them into the Emerald Forest. The reason I need you is to kill Salem so the reincarnation curse can be broken and to protect the relics. If she gathers all four relics, she could have the power to kill me. We need to stop her before war breaks out" Ozpin explained.**

Oscar tried to calm himself down.

"If I stop the curse, will you leave my head or do I have to die too?" Oscar asked, emotionlessly.

 **"It's complicated..." Ozpin trailed off.**

"I'll help you beat her but I'm going to make sure I fight on my own terms" Oscar stated.

On that note, Oscar opted to protect Qrow from Hazel and Ruby with Weiss and Blake fought Emerald and Mercury.

XXXXX

Back outside...

Team VRSZ were fighting the Mistral police with co-ordinated attacks.

Zelt was using his Heart of Gold massive shield that could separate into two large wingblades with gold ornaments on the shield in the shape of his symbol; a golden feather on each winglade which looks like a pair of feathers when it reconnects as a shield with wind dust forged into it.

Zelt transformed the shield into its wind blade form and spun one of the blades to create a tornado at one of the ships.

Silver used Fenrir, a pair of handguns that can transform into escrima sticks or combine into a sniper rifle equipped with normal bullets and dust bullets to keep his opponents guessing and to add some variety to his fighting style (Fire for explosives, ice to freeze, lightning to electrocute, and wind to blast enemies far away) at the Mistral police.

The hand gun and sniper rifle forms were for long-range attacks and the escrima sticks were for close combat.

He used his semblance, which was limited gravity manipulation on him or anything he gets into physical contact, on one of his bullets to force one of the ships down for Remus.

Remus used his mechanical double-bladed staff that can transform into a handheld railgun called Romulus (In its sword form)with lightening dust at the ship.

Its base form was a bulky short but can be separated into sword hilts then draw out double edged blades; by connecting the end of the sword hilts together changes Romulus into its third form; a double bladed staff and the final form was a railgun which is smaller and less volatile than Velocitas Eradico(military experimental Railgun).

In its sword form, it glows blue and leaves a trail of blight light when its used.

He used his teleportation semblance known as 'Checkpoint' to move behind the Deer faunus with antlers in Blake's army in a puff of blue smoke so he could knock them out from behind.

"Hey! pick on someone your own size!" Sun cried.

Remus transformed his weapon to its staff form and glared.

"You really want to fight me?" Remus taunted.

Sun charged with his nunchucks in both hands.

Nuri watched from a distance, surveying the fights going on.

"So when do I call the others?" Akili asked as she began to get impatient.

"I will give the signal soon. We just have to time it perfectly" Nuri reassured her.

 _Guys, get ready. I'm going to grab the relic soon. -_ Nova said in a text to Nuri.

"Nova has an update. Let the others know to get ready for the attack" Nuri reported.

So on that note, Akili notified her fraction of the white fang on the middle level of Mistral and near the town.

XXXX

 _Down in the vault,_ _Yang confronted her._

"I warned you, Yang. I gave you every opportunity to walk away from Qrow and Oz. So you can believe me when I say this wasn't personal." Raven said, casually.

" _You_ opened the vault." Yang stated while glaring.

"Thanks to the chaos you and your friends caused upstairs. I knew you could handle it. You're my daughter after all." Raven said, matter-of-factually.

"Qrow and Oz told me how the Maiden powers are transferred. The girl you found… she would've had to have trusted you if you were in her final thoughts - cared about you a lot." Yang wondered, cautiously.

"I'm sure they told you _plenty_ , and you just sat and obeyed." Raven said, in a stern voice.

"No, I'm starting to ask questions like you said. So tell me, what happened to the last Spring Maiden? Did she die in battle? Was it sickness?" Yang questioned, in a careful and calm manner.

"What does it matter to you?" Raven asked, irritably.

"I can already see the answer. It's all over your face. How could you?!" Yang cried as her eyes widened.

"She was scared when we found her! Weak. No matter how much training I put her through, she never learned! She wasn't cut out for this world! And with those powers, she would've been hunted her entire life! What I did-" Raven began.

"Wasn't personal." Yang echoed her mother.

"It was mercy!" Raven cried.

"Which is it, mom? Are you merciful, or are you a survivor? Did you let me walk into that trap because you knew I could handle it, or because if many could get what you wanted?!" Yang demanded.

"It's not that simple. You don't know me, you don't know what I've been through, the choices I've had to make!" Raven cried.

"You're right. I don't know you. I only know the Raven dad told me about. She was troubled, and complicated, but she fought for what she believed in, whether it was her team or her tribe! Did you kill her too?" Yang asked, coldly.

 _Raven eyes widened and looked away, before turning back to face her daughter again._

"I've stared death in the face over and over again! ( _in her anger, her Maiden powers activated_ ) And every time I've _spat_ in that face and survived, because I'm strong enough to do what others won't!" Raven cried.

"Oh, shut up! You don't know the first thing about strength! You turn your back on people, you run away when things get too hard, you put others in harm's way instead of yourself! ( _she made her left hand into a fist while shaking_ ) You might be powerful, but that doesn't make you strong." Yang stated as she then pointed at Raven.

" _ **Who do you think you are lecturing me?!**_ Standing there, shaking like a scared little girl?!" Raven yelled in a enraged tone.

"Yeah, I'm scared. But I'm still standing here! I'm not like you, I _won't_ run, which is why _you're_ going to give me the Relic." Yang remarked.

"And why would I-" Raven began.

" _ **Because you're afraid of Salem!**_ And if you thought having Maiden powers put a target on your back, imagine what she'll do when she finds out you have a Relic. ( _Raven turned away, seething_ ) She'll come after you with everything she has. ( _Raven's expression then turned solemn_ ) Or she can come after me. ( _Raven's eyes widened when she hears her daughter say that, before turning back to her._ ) And I'll be standing there, waiting for her." Yang exclaimed.

 _After a tense moment, Raven deactivated her Maiden powers._

"You don't want to do this, Yang." Raven said in a soft, sombre tone.

"Nope. But I'm gonna do it anyway." Yang replied, in a scared but selfless way.

 _She then walked forward, bumping her mother out of the way as she passed her. Raven looked down before turning to see her daughter approach the Relic chamber. A tear dripped from Raven's eye._

"I… ( _holding her arm as tears well up in her eyes_ ) I'm sorry…" Raven said, tearfully.

 _Tears welled up in Yang's eyes as well._

"Yeah… Me too." Yang said, sadly in a disappointed tone.

 _She then heard the sound of one of Raven's portals as well as the sound of flapping wings from behind her. She looked behind her and saw a black feather fall gently to the ground._

 _So she went forward to enter the chamber that had sand and flowing particles from the sand Lilly pad patterns on the ground._

 _She reached the stone pedestal where the relic of knowledge_ _\- an ornate, gold and cyan lamp - was._

 _She grabbed it by the handle and heard small, indistinct whispers from inside._

 _Tears then streamed from Yang's eyes, before she fell to her knees as she broke down crying._

 _While Yang was distracted, Nova, who's aura had returned at 50%, used her semblance to grab the relic from Yang._

 _Once Yang realised it was gone, she ran towards the elevator._

 _Yang was about to try to fight for it but Nova put a hand out._

 _"It's best if you don't try to fight me or I'll tell my boss that your 'Momma' is the spring maiden" She hissed._

 _Yang put her arm down in defeat._

 _"Fine, you win but don't tell a soul. I don't want her to be chased down even if she did just abandon me again. She's still family" Yang stated._

 _"Understood. so, come on" Nova insisted._

 _Yang joined her on elevator._

 _Back at the grand hall, Oscar was defending an exhausted Qrow while Ruby and her friends held off their opponents, who were all exhausted as well._

"That's enough! Just give up." Ruby exclaimed.

 _Mercury snarled and yelled in frustration, slamming his fist into the ground._

"It's not over! Cinder will come back, she'll have the Relic, and she'll stop all of you! She won't let us down." Emerald stated, in confidence.

 _The platform leading to the vault is heard coming back up. Everyone stared as Nova came back up with the Relic of Knowledge in her hand. Emerald looked in surprise as Cinder didn't come back up. After Nova came off the platform, Yang was seen behind her._

 _All of Yang's friends looked up to her and smiled._

"Yang…" Ruby said with relief.

 _Hazel was seething while tears streamed from Emerald's eyes. Yang smiled back down to her friends and shared a brief glance with Blake, who looked down for a bit before looking back up to her._

Nova went over to Hazel and gave him the gold and blue lamp relic.

"Mercury, I suggest you keep hold of it" Hazel stated as Mercury snatched it from him.

"What did Ozpin do to you that would make you call him 'evil' and try to kill every incarnation?" Yang asked.

"Why are you asking?" Hazel questioned.

"I'm not trying to follow anyone blindly, I just want to know the **Truth** " Yang stated.

Ozpin, though weak from fighting, stepped in.

"Hazel's sister Gretchen was chosen as the fall maiden and took the name 'Amber'. She was attacked and a figure that we now know was Cinder took half of that power when Qrow rescued her. You know what happened with Pyrrha and well I may have sent them both including Summer Rose to their deaths to combat Salem" Ozpin confessed.

As **When it falls** played, Yang turned to Ozpin.

"I will never forgive you for that" She said to him, bitterly.

 **'The embers that remain will light the fuse of condemnation'** echoed in the background.

"Do what you want with him but leave now" Yang said, darkly at the bad guys.

"Yang..." Ozpin said, in shock before his body glowed green as he switched back to Oscar.

Hazel grabbed Oscar while he was recovering.

 _Emerald fell to her knees and began to sob. Mercury and Hazel slowly backed away._

"Emerald, get up, we need to go." Emerald urged, in a low voice.

 _Emerald shook her head and remained stationary._

"Emerald!" Mercury cried.

 _Emerald looked around as her breathing got frantic. She held her head and let out a loud scream, activating her Semblance._

 _Suddenly, the room turned dark as black smoke rose from the ground nearby. From it, a giant effigy of Salem, limbs bent and deformed, towered above everyone in the room. The giant Salem opened her eyes, and let out an ear-piercing scream as it swooped down over everyone. Then everything went black._

 _Afterwards, everything returned to normal, Ruby was shaking in fear as she came to terms with what she had just witnessed. Everyone in the room was still present, with the exception of Emerald, Oscar, Nova Mercury and Hazel, who have disappeared._

"Wha- what was that?" Blake asked in shock.

"An illusion. But an accurate one. That… was Salem." Qrow replied.

Sun sent a message to Blake urging her to get all over her friends away from the school as fast as possible.

"Guys, we need to leave the building now!" Blake urged.

The group ran outside without asking questions.

Sun made sure everyone was at a safe distance from the school.

 _Outside, Hazel was running and carrying an unconscious Emerald and Oscar over his shoulder, with Mercury following not too far behind him while carrying the relic. Up in the tree branches, Adam watched his allies run, before he too left._

 _Sienna was still tracking Adam with Ebony, Violet and Nova who had just joined the chase._

 _Meanwhile..._

 _Salem used one of her Grimm creatures that could carry and teleport things to retrieve Cinder's body before she sent her Seer Grimm to check on Leo._

 _Back above ground, Lionheart burst into his office and ran behind his desk, frantically opening drawers trying to look for something. Suddenly, he heard ominous clicking noises, and looked up to notice a Seer floating menacingly in front of his desk._

"And where might you be going?" Salem asked from the seer.

"Uh, your grace! ( _nervously chuckling_ ) I was just looking for something." Leo stammered.

"Leonardo, do you have something you wish to tell me?" Salem asked.

 _Lionheart didn't say anything for a bit, before telling Salem his response._

"It was Cinder! She altered the plan! Huntsmen showed up here! Qrow! Several students, one with the Silver Eyes!The White Fang attack, it was stopped! ( _stammering_ ) I don't know that they'll be able to recover the Relic… ( _beat_ ) Your grace, I can still be of assistance! If I leave now, I- I can avoid the authorities and come find you, I'll do whatever it takes! Your grace?" Leo confessed.

 _Out of options, Lionheart aimed his weapon at the Seer (which sealed his fate), but it used one of its tentacles to knock it off his wrist. Lionheart tried to run, but the Seer wrapped one of its tentacles around Lionheart's ankle, causing him to trip and fall._

"Please, ma'am! I'll do anything! I can still be useful!" Leo begged, pathetically.

 _The Seer aimed its sharp tentacles at Leo as he tried to crawl away, but more tentacles wrapped around his body._

"Please! PLEEEAAASE!" Leo cried.

 _Despite his pleas, Leo was dragged towards the Seer offscreen. The sound of a stab was heard._

"Please…" Leo begged, weakly.

All of the good guys had managed to escape outside when Nova activated the explosives which killed Leo inside without Sienna seeing the designator.

 _In Salem's Domain, the dark queen herself stared at the Seer in front of her on the table, leaning her head on her hand in disappointment._

"Coward…" Salem muttered to herself.

 _Hopefully, I get to the next plan once I receive the relic of Knowledge_ she thought.

Back on the quad outside the destroyed Haven academy

Akili called her fraction to launch the assault as the CCT towers fell and some of the medium-sized spider Grimm attempted to approach Mistral.

"Guys, don't panic. We can still win this fight" Sun reassured them to help them stay calm.

"Sienna and Adam have both left. You're without a leader and Mistral is now without a head teacher. I'm the reason this plan still worked since Adam and Cinder tried to change the plan so they leave me to salvage it. Typical (!) I guess I'll have to **remodel** it" Nuri stated as the re-enforcements Akili had called crowded around Blake's army intimidatingly.

"Or you could try to fix it yourself" he added, cryptically.

"Nuri, let me handle this fight" Akili urged.

Nuri nodded and stepped back to allow Akili to take the lead as he went back into the shadows.

So they started another battle which was like the one at Beacon (but with less Grimm and Students around) as the white fang and peaceful Menagerie army fought as hard as they could.

Nuri watched the fight from afar.

 _I just got to survive long enough to do my own thing with Akili_ He thought.

Then he got an idea and sent a message to Nova.

She sent him the co-ordinates and he headed into the woods.

Before he reached Nova's location, Salem's seer found him.

"Nuri, how is the plan coming along?" Salem asked through the seer.

"The CCT tower is down and the others have the relic" Nuri reported.

"Yet, I heard that you went a bit overboard with your role and almost revealed too much in front of those 'children' and the white fang. You need to be more careful or your cover and trust for Adam and Sienna might crumble." Salem stated.

"You see, I was trying to make my role more interesting Salem..." Nuri began, in an uneasy voice.

"Then DON'T screw up the plan like Adam almost did! Akili's survival is on the line for this mission, so don't mess up. You need to be ready to move location because the Crime lord in Mistral and Neo are assembling criminals in Mistral and Vacuo to add to my followers." Salem warned.

"Yes, Salem" He replied, reluctantly.

The seer went away and he headed onwards to fight Nova, Sienna and Ebony fighting a llama Grimm.

In secret, Violet took a picture of them and the Grimm before rushing back to her team.

"Guys, we need to fall back. Our part of the plan is over for now" Violet urged as her team snuck out while the ships were shinning on the white fang fights.

Team ABRN and the rest of team SSSN arrived on a ship to defend their school with Blake's army.

"You guys better stay back!" Neptune cried as both teams jumped off the ship to face the white fang.

He got out his electric gun to fire at the soldiers and criminals.

It was grey gun with a bluish light above the grip with at least four forms: a compact mode, a gun mode, a guandao mode, and a trident mode. The gun mode allows for long-range combat, having the ability to launch electric bolts with the weapon's barrel containing a light blue tube where electricity was generated and a dot-sight on the top of the weapon at the very front.

He shot at some of the soldiers as Sage used his sword to clash with one of the White Fang dog faunus Soldiers.

It appears to have a very large grey-black handle and a bronze chain hanging from its pommel. The blade of the sword itself is long, wide and grey, with a bronze streak in the middle of it. Near the base of the blade is what appears to be Roman numerals, which match the tattoos around Sage's neck.

Scarlet used his sword to block a Japanese-inspired Criminal from attacking Reese.

His sword was a cutlass.

Scarlet's cutlass had a black grip and a dark brass guard. The design of the guard indicates that it is meant to be wielded with the right hand, in order to protect it from enemy attacks.

His pistol was red-brown and dull grey, with some decorative inlays on the side since its inspiration was the flintlock pistol, a type of firearm that was popularized around the 17th century. It had a grappling hook feature too.

Reese was a young girl with light green hair swept to her right, with green eyes, a fair complexion and two black facial markings on her cheeks.

Being a skater, She wore a dark purple hooded sweater over a mauve sweater, black shorts, as well as knee pads and elbow pads on her arms and legs and black shoelaced high top sneakers.

Arslan has a dark complexion, platinum blonde hair and olive green eyes. She wears a yellow robe with only one wide, loose fitting sleeve over a black tube top. She also has black pants and shoes and a red sash embroidered with a white "endless knot" on it. She has bandages on her legs and arms, as well as a red necklace and what appears to be two matching red sticks on the back left side of her head.

Bolin has lightly-tanned skin, amber eyes, and black hair. He wears a yellow sash over a dark blue vest and grey pants with yellow lacing up the sides. He also wears black boots and black fingerless gloves, and a dark grey necklace.

Nadir has long pink hair tied back into a short ponytail, with an undercut, and the undercut portion of his hair is black. He has a dark complexion and blue eyes.

His outfit consists of a cream-colored short-sleeved jacket with yellow details and a black, long-sleeved V-neck shirt, with cream coloured fingerless gloves. He wears black medium-length pants and cream coloured sneakers.

Bolin used his staff to deflect the lizard White Fang member's chainsaw from attacking anyone.

Bolin's Staff is a long staff that is tan in the middle section and black on the end sections. It appears to switch between being opaque and being translucent. The staff also has two small curved blades hidden in each end that can be unfolded to make a bladed weapon.

He used his semblance to make it translucent to trick his attacker and then whacked them on the head.

Arslan used her metallic dagger with a detachable blade which she attached to her durable bandages to transform it into a rope dart to loop around Akili's leg and tried to trip her up.

Nadir used his gun to shoot at the white fang members and the criminals.

Nadir's Gun was a black gun that had a sword hilt acting as its stock and a blade on top of the gun, spanning the gun's length. The gun could also transform into a sword.

Arslan used her semblance of manipulating heat into energy (AKA in the form of fire) along with fire dust from her necklace and shot a fireball at some of Akili's soldiers in rapid succession.

"Guys, RETREAT!" Akili cried as she led her fraction of the white fang to the Mistral underground to escape capture with the criminals trailing behind.

The rest of the white fang surrendered, since both Adam and Sienna were gone.

Now there were two sides to the White fang 'coin': Those loyal to Adam and those loyal to Sienna.

Once the fighting died down and the police got a handle on the members of the white fang that they had trapped, Ruby and her friends reassured the civilians were safe.

They were now a distance away from the destroyed school.

"Yang, why would you just give Oscar away like that?" Ruby asked, innocently.

Yang sighed.

"Ruby, guys; you heard what Ozpin said. He's responsible for Summer's death, your mom, my stepmother's death! I...I can't forgive him for that. I bet he's hiding even more secrets" Yang seethed.

"Yang, you're kind of scaring me" Weiss said in horror.

"I know I just did something horrible but it's for the greater good and I'm still me" Yang reassured them.

"However, Uncle Qrow, I would like to avoid you while we're on this relic protecting mission" She added.

Qrow sighed.

"Very well" He muttered.

Ilia helped Sun and the police round up the white fang members who had been left behind as the criminals Team VRSZ had brought headed to the Mistral underground to escape the police.

The real Ghira arrived in Mistral sometime after everyone else once he had recovered from his coma.

The battle was unofficially over but the war itself was just beginning.

 _Blake sighed in relief now that the battle was over, before she heard the sounds of her parents and Sun run near the destroyed great hall. The Belladonnas shared a hug together while Sun looked on._

"The police rounded up the remaining White Fang members. Haven is safe but in **shambles** " Kali stated.

"Unfortunately, it appears that Adam escaped." Ghira said, in disappointment.

 _They all looked down._

"It's okay. (she _walked towards them slowly_ ) He was the only one to escape tonight. Those in the White Fang that followed him? Won't support a leader that abandons his people. He _won't_ have their help after this. He'll have no one at all. And the White Fang will be left divided." Ilia reassured them.

"We've been fighting amongst ourselves for too long. Perhaps it's time for a new brotherhood. A new family for Faunus truly working towards a better world." Ghira suggested.

"And they'll need a new leader." Kali added, gently.

 _Ghira nodded in acknowledgement. Sun peeked behind Ghira and noticed his old friends from Beacon, waving to them. He then wrapped his tail around Blake to turn her around and have her see her old friends too. She slowly walked towards them nervously while Sun and her parents smiled. Yang walked down the stairs and went to her uncle._

"What happened?" Qrow asked.

"I don't know exactly. When I got down there, Cinder was gone, and Vernal was dead." Yang explained.

"And Raven?" Qrow questioned.

"Gone." Yang stated.

"Well, we're all glad your still here, firecracker." Qrow remarked as he placed _an assuring hand on her shoulder._

 _Suddenly, Ruby groaned and fell to her knees as Weiss caught her._

"Are you okay?" Weiss asked.

Ruby sighed weakly.

"I feel like I should be asking you guys." Ruby stated in a drained voice.

 _They both looked up to see Blake approaching them. Yang walked over and dropped to her sister's side._

"So Blake, what're you doing here?" Ruby wondered.

"I… I was gonna ask you three the same thing." Blake stammered, in embarrassment.

 _Ruby, Weiss, and Yang, shared glances with each other._

"That's… a looooong story." Ruby remarked, sheepishly.

"Well… I'm not going anywhere." Blake reassured them.

"That's all that matters. ( _giggling_ ) That we're all here together. Right?" Ruby asked, happily as she turned to Yang.

 _Blake briefly looked away with a sorrowful expression on her face. Yang looked up at her and smiled._

"Yeah." Yang agreed, in content.

 **All That Matters** played in the background as _Blake looked back over to them and smiled. Weiss offered a hand out to her, and the cat Faunus eagerly joined in to Team RWBY's first group hug after a long time of being apart as the four girls embraced each other while their friends look on smiling._

 _After Ruby and the others got her up to speed on their recent adventures to and in Haven, Blake told them what happened in Menagerie up to when she arrived at the school._

 _There have been Grimm sightings near Vacuo, Sun - Fox sent to Sun._

 _"Guys, something is up. I have to go to Vacuo. Would you guys like to come?" Sun offered._

 _Everyone but Blake agreed to his offer._

 _"Sorry, Sun I have to help my dad rebuild the white fang but i promise i will go to Vacuo and Atlas when I'm done" Blake promised._

"You do what you have to do, Blake" Ilia stated with a small smile.

"You can bring Reese with you on your adventure" Arslan suggested.

"REALLY?!" Reese cried, excitedly.

"Sure, why not. The more the merrier" Yang smiled.

 _So Blake went outside to address the crowd._

"We have to fight against an enemy the world is not aware of and possibly the other kingdoms if it comes to it. There will be injuries and death but by protecting the innocent, we will win back the trust and faith in the rest of the human race. A war is going to break out, people and we have to try to stop it. We're going to try and build a new brotherhood with the white fang and stay hopeful. My parents and Ilia will guide you on this journey. Together, we will do everything in our power to face the war that is coming" She announced.

Everyone cheered.

Back in Patch (The island)…

 _Taiyang was tending to his garden beside the_ _Xiao Long-Rose Family Home on Patch. In truth, he was secretly protecting the Beacon Relic at home._

 _He then heard the sound of flapping bird feathers and noticed a falling black feather._

 _He sighed._

 _"Raven, you actually came to visit" Tai stated._

 _"This was urgent, Tai" Raven remarked in a emotional voice._

 _"I'm listening" Tai replied with a suspicious look on his face._

 _Meanwhile..._

Emerald, Hazel and Mercury with Oscar managed to return to Salem's domain.

However Emerald was still out cold.

"Mam, we brought you a gift" Hazel stated.

He presented Oscar to her.

"What do we have here?" Salem asked, intimidatingly.

Oscar whimpered at the very sight of her.

 **"Oscar, don't show her your fear" Ozpin warned him, weakly.**

"This is Ozpin's new form, mam" Hazel explained, in a irritated voice.

"Stay calm, Hazel. I'll deal with him" Salem reassured him.

"The next target is Vacuo. You need to make sure Neo makes a start to travel to Atlas as Tyrian and Watts will be using the Mistral underground to get into Atlas. Henry Marigold, the informant in Atlas will be our inside guy for Atlas along with Raven Ebony, so everything is prepared for the fall of Atlas in due time as well." Salem stated.

"Thank you but what about Cinder?" Mercury asked.

"I will take care of her but stay focused on the mission. Hazel, make sure Emerald recovers" Salem warned.

Hazel nodded.

 _Neo, start trekking to Atlas. The next target is Vacuo, so you need to move ASAP_ \- Hazel sent to Neo through Watts' underground telecommunications.

 _Understood, Akira and I will leave as soon as we can- was Neo's reply._

 _In Vacuo_

Neo used her scroll to alert Akira of the plan.

-Flashback-

A couple of days ago, Neo met some criminals within the community meet up centre who were not happy with the White fang's actions over the years.

"So you propose forming a group to rival the White fang and name it 'Black talons?" a jaguar faunus assassin asked.

Neo nodded.

"Are you aware of the name Sneachta?" A young jackal faunus asked.

Neo heled up her scroll.

It said 'No' as her answer.

"He's the crime boss in Mistral. If we get his help, we can make this idea of yours a reality" The jackal Faunus pointed out.

"We would have to make it appear to be an all human group though" The jaguar faunus added.

Neo nodded in agreement.

"We'll make sure of it" Grimm Ebony remarked from the shadows.

"Soon, The Black Talons will become a reality in due time" The Jackal Faunus reassured Neo.

-End of Flashback-

"Now, go. We need to get the next attack ready as soon as possible" Salem stated as Mercury handed her the relic.

Hazel nodded and led Mercury away to a portal to Vacuo.

Salem sent a message to Henry to make sure the war that Ironwood was so concerned about prevent would break out inevitably.

As soon as Hazel and company left, Salem turned her attention to Oscar just as Ozpin had gain 25% of his energy back.

She grinned as she used dark energy to torture him as much as possible.

Oscar screamed in agony.

 **"OSCAR!" Ozpin yelled in concern as he took off Oscar's body with what little energy he had left.**

"AHH! Salem, stop!" Ozpin cried out-loud as Oscar's body was still getting tortured.

 **"What...happened?" Oscar asked in confusion. Then he realised he was inside his own head.**

 **"Ozpin, what are you...?" Oscar began.**

"Hush" Ozpin whispered to Oscar.

"Salem, please stop this. The body has nothing to do with this" Ozpin reasoned.

She stopped torturing Oscar's body and got a brilliant idea.

In response to Ozpin, Salem just smirked as she summoned black chains made from the same material the Grimm spider Cinder used on Amber to chain Oscar up like a living trophy.

"I will deal with you soon enough" Salem stated, in a threatening voice.

She picked up the lamp relic.

"Jinn" Salem said.

Out of the lamp came a 12 feet tall voluptuous blue woman with elongated pointed ears, dark blue eyes (lighter blue irises) and long, flowing dark blue hair wearing various gold accessories, most of which have a slavery theme: a chain headdress, big hooped earrings, the right ear also having an extra earring, a choker, bracelets with chains dangling from them along with a single bracelet on her left forearm, anklets, a belt of chains around her waist that ends in a big ring with three prongs (Reflecting the lamp's appearance) and a veil of a wisp-like smoke resembling the skirt of a dress trailing below her waist.

"Salem, this is a surprise. You can ask two questions this century. The first was used by Ozpin some time ago" Jinn revealed.

"Jinn, how do I extract a lot of dust from all of Remnant without getting the white fang to target the dust shops again?" Salem asked.

"The scientist called Merlot and any additional allies have materials to make machines to do this job. The Grimm Faunus can help you extract it from your domain" Jinn responded.

So Salem contacted Merlot, Watts and Raven Ebony to make a machine for her domain to take away a large majority of the dust in the 4 kingdoms plus the villages and Menagerie.

It was a long process but with Tyrian and Hazel's help, the machine was delivered by air to Salem's hideout and used immediately to deal a huge blow on all of humanity.

At the same time...

"VRSZ, you need to go to Vacuo with Nuri to inform any white fang members there of our new plan. Neo and the criminal lord in Mistral have been recruiting people to form a new group to rival the White fang just don't alert them of that detail" Hazel ordered through Watt's secret communication line.

"Understood" Violet replied.

She turned to her team mates.

"Guys, we're going back home" She stated.

Back in Mistral...

Ruby and company were currently trying to find new outfits that was suitable for going to Vacuo.

Adam, on the other hand, had travelled north to Wind Path to see if any smugglers could help him as he tried to hide from the Police.

Sienna, Nova, Ebony and Nuri caught up with him, undetected but Nuri got a message from Watts.

"Sienna, I got to go check on Vacuo to see if there's anyone still loyal to you" Nuri stated.

"Ok, You go on ahead. We'll keep an eye on Adam" Sienna replied, confidently.

Nuri went about 4 metres away from Sienna so he could call Akili in order to get picked up VIA an airship to get to Vacuo.

"Alright, Nuri. We're on our way" Akili stated through the scroll.

"Sienna, I'll be leaving in 2 hours" Nuri reported.

"Nuri, We will protect Sienna with our lives. Right, Nova?" Ebony asked.

"Er...Sure!" Nova replied, feeling flustered.

XXXXXX

Away from the chained up Oscar, Salem began using her dark energy on Cinder's body.

Salem sighed.

"I'm going to make sure you learn to be more cautious next time and less cocky" Salem remarked.

Cinder's left hand twitched slightly.

To be continued in Volume 6 (AKA Chapter 10)...

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

 **I apologise for the very long wait. Volume 6 will come after a long hiatus. I need some space with this story. so I'm going to focus on my other story so I can recover from this one.**

 **I did enjoy adding twists to cannon events but don't worry, i will go back and expand/ add extra chapters that show the Disney Knights more and maybe have them actually fight someone before they leave Remnant.**

 **I will try to tackle Nova's fabricated faunus backstory and Nuri's history with the white fang next time (and maybe flashbacks of Vernal bonding with her tribe and young Sienna at some point).**

 **See you next time! Feel to suggest ideas for places in Vacuo and Volume 6 ideas.**

 **Akili is based on Shenzi from the Lion King.**


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10- Volume 6 (a new chapter, Pancake on the brain and the venture to Vacuo)

 **Galben is Yellow in Romanian and Pardus is Leopard in Latin. Naranja is Orange in Spanish and Mkaa means Charcoal in Swahilli. Kijani is green in Swahili, Ahumado means Smoky in Spanish (Janja side of Ash).**

 **This is the start of my version of Volume 6. It doesn't follow the show but the core plot elements like the relics, taking them to safe places, the maidens and silver eyes will remain the same along with core theme of fighting Salem as well. (Note: 'After the Fall' Come is referenced a lot in this chapter and a few others) Enjoy!**

 _'In the darkness, there is always hope but sometimes it comes at a cost. What cost are you willing to take to know the truth? Because there will be a time when_ everything's looking bleak and they're bound to get worse. Who will you choose to trust when the truth is out in the open?'

Before Neo left Vacuo with Grimm Ebony (AKA Raven Ebony), she made sure the small group she had assemble with the Jaguar Faunus known by his alias 'Naranja' were aware that Nuri, Hazel and Mercury were coming to make sure the group's eventual formation would go smoothly.

Then the duo stole an airship and started their long journey to Atlas even though Neo accidently put in the co-ordinates for 'Mantle' instead…

At Windpath….

Adam looked for other Faunus criminals who were hiding out in the Windpath and came across his old Lieutenant.

"Adam, so you finally ended up running away like Blake?" The Lieutenant scoffed.

The Lieutenant has a muscular appearance and short black hair. He wears the standard pants and black gloves of other White Fang members, but his forearms have metal guards. The lieutenant also has a distinctive top with a collar that sticks up around his neck and lacks the buttoned look of the standard garb. Over his usual uniform was a green hoodie to hide his status.

The Lieutenant also wears a custom Grimm Mask that covers his whole face and has red eyes with thin red streaks streaming to the bottom of the mask. On his left arm, he bears one or more black tattooed designs, which can also be found in Adam Taurus' mask.

"I need your help to contact someone" Adam stated.

"Me help you? After that disaster in Vale almost got me killed?!" The Lieutenant cried.

"Pardus Galben, you are the last remaining White fang member who's been loyal to me since the beginning of my leadership of the Vale branch. If you help me plan a revenge attack, you can pick any Schnee to kill in Atlas" Adam offered with conviction.

"Fine, but you better keep your word. Since we're all that's left, how do you suggest we get an army for your plan?" Lieutenant Pardus asked.

"By using spies and whoever's still loyal to me to spy on the criminals in the other kingdoms to gain more recruits" Adam suggested.

"It could use some work but it a somewhat competent plan. Come with me" Pardus stated as he led Adam through the windy grassland valley into the settlement that was like a city but with wind-resistant shelters and smaller CCT towers.

Sienna began to feel frustrated due to the two soldiers moving on and tried to go after them.

Ebony put her hand out to stop her.

"Before you have your inevitable rematch, we might need some back-up" She pointed out.

"Why?!" Sienna snarled.

"Because there are smugglers, assassins and criminals everywhere in this city. We need more allies for support" Nova warned.

Sienna froze as she saw people walk about with different masks that represent which kingdom, settlement or island they originate from to conceal their identities.

"We need to take cover and contact reinforcements" Ebony suggested in a low voice.

"Come with me if you want to survive" a voice said.

They turned around to see a middle-aged person wearing a green, blue and black huntsman uniform with a glowing ball emblem and a black eye-mask.

"You may call me 'Cyan'" She stated as she led them to a safe place.

Meanwhile…..

As Ruby and co prepared their outfits and belongings to leave for Vacuo in a few days, Tyrian was sent into the mid-way point of the lower levels in Mistral to make sure the plan for a new rival group to the White fang was going smoothly.

He had his brand-new silver tail that Watts had made at Salem's request.

Sneachta came out in his armour to greet him once he arrived.

"Snechta, I was told that your group is meant to be growing. So, who's your appointed leader for this group here?" Tyrain asked, curiously.

"The person I've chosen is Ash Mkaa, former member of the white fang and distant relative of Akili" Snechta replied.

A young reluctant adult hyena faunus came out wearing a black and white blazer top with a, dark grey jean and black boots came out with her companion who was the real-world equivalent of Brazilian with brown eyes but had a special green and blue version of Ash's uniform designed to keep any faunus trait hidden from human members.

"This is Gecko Lime, Cover name being 'Olive'. You must be Tyrian" Ash stated, shyly.

"My owl friend, Ginger and I helped design the uniform but we're still working on the final design" 'Olive' said, in embarrassment.

" _Olive! Don't anger our guest! You and Ash are blowing my chance to impress the boss!_ " Ash cried in a slightly deeper and harsher voice.

"Ash, calm down please. You need to be you not Ahumado" 'Olive' begged.

"Ahumado?" Tyrian asked, curiously.

"I am Ahumado" Ash's deep voice personality replied.

Tyrian's eyes peeked with interest.

"Ash, think of your happy place" Olive pleaded.

Ash closed her eyes and then opened them suddenly before sighing.

"I guess you know about Ahumado now. Why did you pick me as leader, Snechta?" Ash asked.

"You're the perfect person to use as a symbol of 'hope' for humans and Faunus without them even realising. Now then, Ash do you have anyone who can help with your new task?" Snechta asked.

Ash's ears flattened.

"Um… well I have Gregory Vert, the best gecko faunus I know" she confessed.

Snechta got an update on his scroll.

"I have word that there's a faunus spy called Rina Yuki with Henry Marigold in Atlas as we speak to recruit faunus who are abused there" He stated.

"We need to let Ginger know how many members we're going to have in the Black Talons" Olive stated.

"So where is Gregory?" Snechta asked.

"He's in town, checking the area. Who is going to be the new headteacher of Mistral?" Ash asked.

"What if Merlot replaces Lionheart" Sneachta suggested.

"That's an exceptional idea, Snechta" Watts stated.

He got a message on his scroll that the Grimm Merlot had created had arrived safely to Salem.

Watts sent a message to Merlot to inform him about travelling to Mistral to become the new headteacher but prevent it from being opened.

"Ash, Snechta will help you with your leadership skills for the Mistral branch. I need to check on how Hazel and Mercury are doing in Vacuo next" Watts stated.

"Although I'm going to take a little trip to Mantle first. Neo has started her trip to Atlas and Nuri is on his way to meet Hazel and Mercury in Vacuo. Good luck, children" He added.

A mysterious figure wearing a hood overheard their conversation and then left while making a phone call to old friend nicknamed 'Wiz'.

-Back in Windpath-

Inside one of the safe huts, 'Cyan' sat down with Sienna, Nova and Ebony for a private talk.

"I know you want to go after the infamous Adam of all people but there is a way to make contact with a group in Menagerie for enforcements for your rematch" she said in a hushed voice.

"But what about the CCT towers issue?" Sienna pointed out.

"We have alternative routes in the black market" 'Cyan' replied.

She used the white Fang's system to contact Ghira.

Nova brought Sienna a safe distance from 'Cyan' to talk quickly.

"Are you sure Ghira will trust you after you led the white Fang before?" Nova asked.

"Well, I can't say for sure but I think he'd be glad I'm alive" Sienna pointed out, carefully.

Nova sighed.

"I'll try to figure out Adam's plan while we wait" Nova stated.

Sienna nodded as Nova set out into the city of Wind Path using her semblance as cover.

She found Lieutenant Pardus and Adam talking with some of the thieves hiding in Wind Path.

"The faunus that are here may be willing to help your cause, but I've heard rumours of a new group going to rise to take the White Fang's place soon. You might have to form some agreement with them too" The thief suggested.

"We'll consider the offer, thank you for your time" Adam replied.

He then sighed.

"It's not safe to move location yet" Lieutenant Pardus advised.

"We can't stay here forever, Blake could end up in a different kingdom by the time we move on" Adam said with frustration.

"If we rush things, we'll both die. You know that" Lieutenant Pardus pointed out.

Adam tried to calm down.

"Who's next on the list?" he asked with gritted teeth.

"Chloe Avacado" Lieutenant Pardus replied.

-Back in Mistral-

Snechta left Tyrian to help Ash and Olive establish the branch of Black Talon for the black market as he ended into the streets to find one of infamous crim bosses.

In one of the bars was the spider-themed crime group led by Little Miss Malachite, the mother of the twins who work for Junior last seen in Vale.

She owned the bar and was enjoying a drink when Snechta walked in.

Lil' Miss was a heavy-set middle-aged woman with light skin, light purple eyes and short blonde hair kept in a bob haircut with a spider in its web tattooed on her left shoulder, a beauty mark under her right eye, lipstick on her upper lip and purple nail polish on her fingernails wearing awhite and backless dress with long sleeves and beads and straps, in purple, a purple corset, and a long pleated skirt that is yellow on its top layer, purple in the middle one, and white in the lower layer and brown shoes decorated with a green ribbon.

"State your business and tell me who you are please" she requested.

"I am Snechta, leader of the fraction of the black market in the section above. I need your help to form a new organisation to represent humans and fight back after what the White Fang did. We're going to be called the 'Black Talons'" he stated, humbly.

"Alright, I'll need details of when it forms, the uniforms and how it's gonna grow in the other kingdoms including Menagerie and the villages that still exist in Remnant. Have we got a deal?" Miss Malachite asked.

"We do" Snechta replied as he shook her hand.

"Oh and one more thing: if you know the girls Miltia and Meleanie, I need you to tell them to find a strong leader if anyone is left in Vale" he finished.

"Alright, I'll let my daughters know" Miss Malachite replied with a cunning smile.

Snechta began to leave.

"I'll be back to check in a few month" he stated.

His next step was to see how the Vacuo branch was doing...

-Meanwhile-

Blake and Ilia was helping her parents to regroup the White Fang so it could get restructured.

Since the fight in Haven, they had returned to Menagerie to set up meetings for this remodelling to take place.

"This will be a long process, Blake. Shouldn't you go meet your friends?" Ghira asked.

"Soon, have to make sure you get a good head start first" Blake replied.

They then received a message on the hologram machine the white fang had.

"My name is 'Cyan' and I'm calling from Windpath. I need re-enforcements, Adam is in the area and Sienna needs help" the hologram said.

"Come on, Blake. You can join us in the Bullhead. We'll drop you off in Vacuo on the way there" Kali, her mother suggested.

"I..um…I'll stay here and hold down the fort" Ilia added.

"Come on, Ilia. I could use the company" Blake offered, quickly.

They all boarded the bullhead with quite a few soldiers with the blue and white peaceful White fang flag and headed out to Vacuo.

-Meanwhile-

As Ruby, her friends, Sun, Reese and Qrow took a bullhead to Vacuo, The figure that was a bull faunus called Nico Taurus Phantom got his friend 'Wiz' to distract Watts and Neo as he too arrived in Vacuo.

In the middle of desert, what people outside the kingdom call a 'Wasteland', people who lived there called it 'Home'.

The actual City of Vacuo had a lot of sand, which was typical for this climate, huts that were similar to some of the settlements outside it but with tropic colours.

It had a marketplace with food like cactus leaves, coffee, fried crevice worms, cave beetles, desert lotus tea, cactus tea, gecko cake, bat stew, ale, flatbread, and breadfruit.

The odd time it had mole crab too, but it was hard to come by since they were hard to find and kill unless one was huntsmen.

There were also tourist shops with T-shirts.

At the centre of the city was Shade Academy, a tall pyramid-like building that governed the city and educated youth to be strong huntsmen alike.

Beside it was the grand CCT Tower gifted from Atlas after the great war, but the communication with other kingdoms hadn't worked since the fall of Beacon about 1 or 2 years ago now.

The problem was Ruby and her friends were not as prepared for the harsh conditions of Vacuo compared to Sun who was Native to it.

They had to walk some of the way there.

They got to fight a Blind Worm going after a group of nomads heading towards Coquina.

Team CFVY met up with them and stayed in Coquina for a few days.

They told each other what had occurred at Haven and what team CFVY had experienced: a plot to kidnap people with power semblances.

After saying goodbye to Gus and Edward who were heading Oscuro, one of the combat schools; The four teams walked the rest of the way to the city.

It wasn't long before they saw Shade Academy dead-ahead as they arrived in the city.

"Given who hired Carmine and Bertilak, We'll need to investigate further" Coco stated.

"And we can assist anyway possible" Ruby added.

Coco's team nodded.

"We'll need extra help to get information out of those two. They're in prisoned in Coquina now" Velvet explained.

"You see we need to speak to the headteacher" Jaune said, wearily.

 _Really? We're heading back to Shade now_ Fox sent.

"Did you just speak in our minds?" Nora asked.

Fox nodded.

"That is amazing!" Nora cried.

"Pipe down, Nora. Not everyone knows it" Yatsuhashi pointed out, softly.

"Right, sorry" Nora said, sheepishly.

Team CFVY led Ruby and company to one of the safe haven huts to keep their things safe while they and team SSSN (Sun) checked in to the school again since their team missions were completed and team SSSN needed to make their transfer official.

When Nuri and Akili arrived in Vacuo, Hazel and Mercury were waiting in one of the safety huts.

The landscape was mostly desert in the section of Vacuo they were in but Shade Academy was not too far ahead in the distance.

"We have word that the new rival group the Black Talons is still in the formation stage. I was thinking that once they're all set with members, uniforms and a clear symbol; we could use them for help if there's no white fang members in this area" Mercury suggested.

"Well that was HIS Idea. We first need to locate the summer maiden and then infiltrate Shade Academy" Hazel stated.

As they were talking, Coco from team CVFY noticed them from afar.

She and her team had taken refuge in Vacuo after the fall of beacon to continue their education at huntsmen and huntresses.

She quickly slipped away back in the direct of school to avoid drawing attention.

-In Salem's castle-

Emerald finally recovered from using her semblance on a lot of people and got up.

She almost walked into Salem as she tried to find Mercury.

"Emerald, I need you to head back to Beacon. Mercury will join you once he's done in Vacuo. You need to make sure the relic is there, the grimm I sent there didn't find anything, and that dragon is still immobilised even now" Salem ordered.

"Yes, mam" Emerald replied, hurriedly in fear.

"Oh and just to let you know, Cinder will be joining you eventually" the dark mistress added.

Emerald's eyes widened.

"She's alive..?" she whispered.

As she walked away in shock, she boarded one of their Bullheads.

-Back in Vacuo-

Nuri and Akili began to plan with Hazel and Mercury on how the attack on Shade Academy would be co-ordinated.

"The people here are survivors and it's most like there's no White Fang members here" Nuri noted.

"Team VRSZ will need to find a good leader that can help us with the task" Hazel stated.

"We'll survey the area for potential allies" Akili suggested as she and Nuri with cloaks on, headed to the prison in Coquina first.

-To be continued-

 **I'm so sorry chapter 10 took so long to finish but i'm so glad it's FINALLY done.**

 **I hope to do my best to make this as interesting as possible.**

 **At the time I'm writing this, I haven't finished reading 'After the Fall' yet, but I really will reference it as soon as possible.**

 **I hope you've enjoyed the start of my version of chapter 10 :D**

 **Ash is based on Jasiri and** **Ahumado on Janja; both Jasiri and Janja are from the show the Lion Guard**

 **PS: I'll try not to make the next chapter too long of a wait.**


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11- First hurdle

 **References to After the fall and its book characters will be included in this chapter onwards.** **Matlal is 'green' in Nahutl (based on Kronk) and Furtiva Violeta (based on Yzma) is Sneaky Violet in Spanish. Enjoy! Nico belongs to Rhythmic Phantom on the RWBY Amino.**

 **NewDreamer helped me with suggesting ideas for the prison appearance.**

When team VRSZ arrived in the city of Vacuo, they encountered a squirrel faunus dressed in casual green and orange clothes with green eyes and black short hair with the Vacuo kingdom symbol.

His weapon was a spinach chain.

"Name's Matlal. Need any help?" he asked.

"We're looking for someone worthy of leading a big group" Violet explained.

"Know anyone like that?" Remus added.

Matlal nodded.

"Sure do! Follow me" he exclaimed.

'Naranja' and the jackal faunus Neo had recruited followed them from behind.

Matlal led the way to a purple-themed hut where his boss Furtiva Violeta was waiting.

She had black eyes, wore a purple snake scale-patterned dress and sandals with fangs for teeth.

She was also armed with a special gun with fangs at the end equipped with every poison known to human and faunus kind.

"Well, hello there. What do I own this visit?" She asked with charisma.

"Friends, this is my boss Furtiva Violeta. She's well-known for her variety of poison from all over Remnant" Matlal explained.

"Um my name is Violet and we're team VRSZ. Are you good at leading?" Violet asked.

"Leading? Why of course I am. It's what I was born to do" Furtiva replied.

"Well team VRSZ, you found the perfect person to lead the Black Talons" 'Naranja' grinned.

"The mistral crime boss will be pleased indeed" The Jackal faunus added.

Violet looked at her team and then back at them.

"So, what else can we do?" she asked.

"See if you can find anyone willing to join this group. I'm guessing both faunus and humans can join right?" Matlal suggested.

"Matlal, go with them. You might get a chance to show off your semblance in battle later" Furtiva ordered.

Matlal nodded.

He led them out of the hut.

"We got word about two huntsmen getting sent to prison in Coquina a few days ago. I can take you there to see if they can help too" he offered.

"Lead the way" Violet replied.

-Meanwhile in Windpath-

Adam and Pardus waited for Chloe.

The pair didn't realise a few ships had arrived outside the city as the ship with Blake and Ilia on board went ahead to Vacuo.

Nova, Ebony and Sienna were waiting for 'Cyan' to return from contacting the white fang.

"Say Nova, while we wait why don't we share something about ourselves?" Ebony suggested.

Nova sighed.

"Alright. I'm from Vacuo, my 'parents' help teach classes at Shade Academy and I joined the White Fang to make a change happen for Faunus kind. Through Adam's faction of the organisation, I got to meet Nuri before rescuing you from Adam" she explained.

"What about….?" Sienna began pointing at her cheeks.

"These cheek marks are a side effect of my semblance" Nova lied with a convincing grin.

"That is fascinating" Ebony noted.

She thought for a moment before continuing.

"My parents are top secret but I'm here to help you Sienna, ensure the White Fang keeps its firm ground you added and its peaceful roots. I may seem like a huntress but not every huntress is good. I just want to help keep the balance of order stable" She admitted.

"And….?" Nova encouraged.

"I can't say anymore. It's…classified" Ebony sighed.

"I'm the one who encouraged Adam's violent killing. It started when humans ambushed us while trying to cross an area and he had no choice but to kill them to save Ghira. Ghira had scolded Adam but I had praised him: that's where the change started.

I moulded him into a monster who tried to murder me in cold blood. And I'm from Coquina in Vacuo.

My mother was from Kuo Kuana, that why I met Ghira and got into the White Fang" Sienna explained.

Nova groaned.

"That lady is taking forever!" she complained.

'Cyan' reappeared for a few minutes without warning.

"I have contacted the White Fang. You stay here, I have some clients to attend to" she revealed.

20 minutes later, she found Adam and Pardus in Windpath.

"Are you Chloe?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm Chloe Avocado. Mercenary and former Huntress. What do you want?" 'Cyan' asked.

"We need your help to gain new allies in order to move safely to Argus" Adam explained.

"I can help you if you help me with something: I want to make sure most of the thieves and smugglers here get captured. You can help me knock them out and then we'll be on our way" Chloe offered.

"Fine, lead the way" Adam said, begrudgingly.

An hour later, most of the people in Windpath had been knocked out.

Nova led Ebony and Sienna to where Adam was and were shocked to find 'Cyan' AKA Chloe with Adam.

"Why did you betray us?" Nova asked, darkly with her sword ready.

Chloe grinned.

"I did your request but you have to be careful about who trust in Windpath" Chloe warned.

"Sienna…I don't have time to fight you again but I will settle the score another time" Adam promised.

"Looking forward to it" Sienna replied with a cold smile.

"Who are you?" Nova pointed at Pardus while speaking.

"I'm Lieutenant Pardus. I helped with the train breach in Vale about two years ago now" he replied.

"Goodbye, children" Chloe waved as the trio left through a hidden passage towards Argus just as the white fang members and mistral police landed

Some of the remaining smugglers followed them in pursuit.

-At the same time-

The hooded figure was a bull faunus named Nico Taurus Phantom, he just arrived in Vacuo after his friend 'The Wiz' slowed down Watts and Neo's progression.

He followed Nuri and Akilli's trail as his friend hacked Neo's scroll through the underground's communication system and left Nico's symbol: a brown bull inside a red triangle.

"Wiz, keep me posted on the criminal Neo" Nico requested.

"Roger, that" Wiz replied on his scroll.

-Meanwhile-

After Team SSSN and CVFY alerted Shade Academy they were back and registered, for Sun's team's sake, They brought Ruby and company into the school.

"Professor Theodore is currently busy at the moment with preparations for an assembly coming up, but we can introduce you to the teachers" Coco explained.

"Including my mother" Sun added.

"Wait, she works here?" Yang asked.

Sun nodded.

The two teams led the way through the black and brown halls as a teacher with a black panther tail walked passed with a stack of books, dressed in a black and purple suit that reflected Shade.

Any students they went passed were in casual clothing of bright colours much like Sun and Fox, respectively.

It wasn't long before they ran into a tall woman with shoulder-length blonder hair, blue eyes and tan skin wearing a yellow, blue and red dress. She had a yellow monkey tail like Sun.

"Mother!" Sun cried as he hugged her.

"Hello, Sun. You must be his friends, I am Professor Wukong" Tobu Wukong greeted.

"Hello" they all greeted in return.

"As you can see, we are getting more students from Haven like your friends on Sun's team in great numbers and it has been a struggle to manage it all" Tobu revealed.

"I'm guessing this assembly will address it" Coco guessed.

Tobu nodded slightly.

"It will be a few days before the assemble occurs, children" she added.

She led the way through the halls as they began a tour of the school to refresh Team CVFY's memory of the place and enchant the visitors as well.

Professor Rumpole, the teacher who had set Team CVFY on their mission into the desert, was in a classroom prepping for history.

She was reasonably short fellow with short brown hair and eyes wearing a yellow outfit that resembled the colour of hay.

She then looked up as the students were passing her classroom.

"I'm so glad you're safe, children. Did you find out who sent the signal?" She asked.

"Yes, but the mystery isn't over yet. We'll have to tell Professor Theodore about it" Coco replied.

"Good luck!" Rumpole called.

-About 3 miles away in Coquina-

The outside of the prison was a reddish Flatback Slider shell, so a gigantic turtle shell from a Flatback Slider that died eons ago.

Nuri and Akili were inside the prison during visiting hours to interview two people in particular: Bertilak Celadon and Carmine Esclados.

The inside of the prison was the pale pink and red found on some types of mollusc shells with the guards wearing said shells as part of their uniforms.

"They're right through here" one of the guards with a kangaroo tail said, pointing to the right at one of the interview rooms.

The pair went in and sat face to face with the mercenary Huntsmen duo.

"Who are you?" Carmine asked with a glare.

Carmine is a young woman with long back length wavy auburn hair with a single silver streak. She also has golden eyes, freckles and a black stylish tattoo on her right side to her upper leg. She wears a dark navy cropped long-sleeved shirt with a metal chain-like top attached, a white cape with crimson trimmed and her emblem on it, crimson torn off booty shorts that match her tatter scarf and thigh-length black leather boots.

In addition, she wears goggles on top of her head, black belts with sheaths for her Sai weapons, a single belt on the right sleeve and her left leg. She also wears worn bandages wrapped around her wrists.

"People who want to help if you're willing to listen" Nuri replied.

"And why would I ever listen to faunus scum like you?" Bertilak questioned.

He was a tall, broad, and muscular man standing at 6 foot and 6 inches in height with brown eyes, a green mohawk and matching goatee wearing a brown, hooded cloak from coarse fabric, a green chest plate over a dirty black tunic; his biceps were bulging from the short sleeves, showing a long scar stretched along his right forearm.

"Because if you don't co-operate, you'll be stuck in this prison for the rest of your miserable lives" Akili threatened.

"And your employer wouldn't be happy if that happened, would they" Nuri added in a cold voice.

The cameras in the room shut off in that moment.

"So please enlighten us: who hired you?" he asked.

"The person who hired us for this job is known as 'The Crown'. We went around trafficking people with powerful semblances for them, not sure what they look like yet. Could be anyone. The question is why come to us? Given what that 'Team CVFY' did….I'll need a few punches to be up my game again" Bertilak replied.

"If you're a huntsman, where's your weapon?" Akili taunted.

"That bastard FOX destroyed my mace in the sandstorm!" the trafficker huntsman cried.

"I see. Well you both have potential, I think our connections will be quite pleased with our findings today. But this isn't the end of our chat. You're going to help advocate the group we're forming: The Black Talons. Regardless of your reputation, we'll be able to convince the people here to support it if they see it as helping their survival" Nuri suggested.

"And what exactly are The Black Talons?" Carmine asked.

"It's going to replace the White Fang. That's all you need to know for the moment" Akili stated.

The cameras came back on a minute after he spoke.

The guards came in to see them out.

"We'll be back in a month" Nuri finalised.

"Very well" Bertilak replied, reluctantly.

Behind the glass that was tinted to hide any observers was Nico who had watched everything and had his friend 'Wiz' tape the conversation for him, causing the cameras to go on and off.

He used his semblance Phantom Step to quietly tail Nuri and Akili back to the City of Vacuo.

 **-To be continued-**

 **Note:** **Cyan- real name: Chloe Avocado Allusion: Shego.**

 **I'm gonna try to describe Nico's appearance next time.**

 **I'll try my best to have My version of Volume 6 long enough.**

 **Um see ya next time.**


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12- Shade and some answers…

 **Professor Theodore is from After the fall and Before the Dawn,** **Maria Calavera is from RWBY's Volume 6 (where she debuted), Neo gets the outfit seen in Volume 6 (at the end) and two characters are based on** **Xóchitl and** **Huitzilin from the story called 'The Legend of the Cempasuchil Flower'.**

When the tour was over, Team CFVY managed to get permission to see Professor Theodore in his office.

It was some similarities to Ozpin's office like the desk and windows but everything else in the room matched his white and green colour scheme.

Theodore, himself, was a middle-aged man with short dark brown hair with green eyes and tanned skin wearing a smart suit with green, white and black stripes.

"How can I help, Team CFVY?" he asked.

"We need help getting information on Berilak and Carmine's employer. You see they had files on us as well as Gus and seemed to be tasked with kidnapping people with powerful semblances" Coco explained.

"I see…We'll do what we can to help but with limited Scroll access to the CCT Towers….it will be difficult. The Atlas Schnee Dust Company base and remaining mines help us continue to trade with other kingdoms. However, since Beacon and Mistral's towers fell; I fear we could be next. It's why the amount of students coming it is getting harder to manage" Theodore replied.

"Other than the stress of refugees, are you alright Professor?" Velvet asked.

Theo nodded.

"You may go now, you'll understand my plan at the assembly" he added.

"So, what did he say?" Ruby asked, eagerly.

He's thankfully ok but he's worried Shade could be the next target, Fox sent.

"Children, we need to find a place to stay for the night" Qrow suggested.

"And I have an idea" he added.

Team CFVY and SSN went to their dorms as Qrow took Ruby and friends to an old monastery.

Not too far away from the main city and one of the old Dust quarries that the Schnee Dust Company mined was a camouflaged old monastery made of marble and stone.

After knocking on the door, they were in for a surprise…

The person who opened the door had silver eyes like Ruby!

"Please, come in! Hurry" they urged.

The person who opened the was a hummingbird faunus in a dress with marigold petals as a pattern. Their faunus trait was humming bird wings.

Their name was Mari.

The other 4 people were also all that were left of the silver-eyed warriors.

"So, you survived too? We have a friend called Maria Calavera, who used to have silver eyes like us on her way to Atlas. Are you here to train?" One of the other members questioned.

"Yes, but is it ok if we stay here for a few nights? Our friends attend Shade Academy you see" Ruby mentioned, nervously.

"I thought Ruby and Summer, who we lost as children, were only ones left with sliver eyes" Yang pointed out.

"There used to be a lot of us, but something was trying to hunt us all down. Whatever it was….must have gotten this 'Summer' of yours" the male known as Mason guessed.

"Do you lose someone?" Jaune asked, gently.

"Yes, they're in a safe place waiting for me to come to them" Mari replied.

"You'll see them again soon" Jaune reassured Mari.

"We're here because we've lost a friend to the enemy and are out of options on who to help Ruby with her eyes" Qrow explained.

"You can rest here, and your training will start tomorrow afternoon" the girl known as Mia in a casual sea blue outfit recommended.

The only other boy in the group, dress in white, Gavin led them to the guest rooms.

-The next day-

The morning was spent touring Vacuo City as Ruby and friends gathered food and supplies on behalf of Mari and her companions.

Nico, Akili and Nuri arrived back in Vacuo City just as Ruby and crew were about to leave.

Nico was a 22 year old male who was mistaken for an age younger or older than that with scarlet-brown hair in a fringe, bull horns and dark brown eyes wearing a black t-shirt with his emblem on the back along with red and black jacket, jeans and red, grey, black, and white sneakers. He had a cloak over his outfit to not draw attention to himself along with a black with a red stripe fedora hat.

His weapon were a pair of bladed shotgun staves that form into a staff called Gugalanna.

Nuri and Akili, after returning, regrouped with Hazel and Mercury.

"Any word from Team VRSZ?" Nuri asked.

"Not yet, but we have spoken to some of the locals about huntsmen or rouge locations" Mercury replied.

"With only two leads. What did you find out?" Hazel questioned.

"Figured out the two huntsmen in prison in Coquina work for someone called 'The Crown' who's got a few people with powerful semblances on their list. We have managed to convince them to help us with rallying the public to support the black Talons when the time is right" Akili reported.

"Great job, you two. All we need to do now is convince other huntsmen to support the Black Talons before you return to Coquina" Mercury pointed out.

"While you were aware, we also got news that Tyrian will eventually join Watts and Neo in Atlas for the next stage" Hazel added.

It was only when Team VRSZ returned from Coquina with their guide Matlal, were Hazel and Mercury informed of the newly found leader of the Black Talons' branch in Vacuo: Furtiva.

Mercury, Hazel, Nuri and Akili searched for any more potential members.

This ended up including Nico Phantom.

Furtiva had an ally who kept tabs on the shady businesses in Vacuo, news and a link to Atlas in some ways. This informant was a Llama faunus in vibrant dark red. He was called Grana (dark red)

She eventually met with Hazel and Mercury in private.

"For this group to work, we'll need a backer who can provide the needed money to fund our resources" she explained.

"I have an idea of the perfect guy but every faunus member in this group has to hide their traits for this scheme to be successful" Hazel advised.

"Alright, who was your suggestion?" Furtiva asked.

"Jacques Schnee" Hazel replied.

"Do you have someone in Atlas to make contact?" Furtiva gave him a stern look.

"Already on that, He's called Henry Marigold. That's our inside man" Mercury stated.

"You're one step ahead. Good. Now talk me through this 'attack plan' of yours…" the snake faunus began.

-Meanwhile-

When afternoon came, Ruby was ready for her training.

The first stage involved concentration…for it wasn't just the power of protecting but it could manifest in dreams too.

"By learning to meditate, you can make contact with the ones you miss" Mari explained.

"This one time I heard Pyrrha and Cinder talking from her last moments" Ruby confessed.

"With our help, you'll be able to talk to them eventually compared to last time" Mason added.

Ruby closed her eyes.

"Focus on one of the individuals you have lost when you go to sleep tonight. Picture what you would say to them" Mari instructed.

First Ruby imagined apologising to Pyrrha and Penny for not being fast enough to save them.

Then she pictured her mother giving her a sad smile.

It took a few attempts at mediation to feel relaxed and confident enough to get to sleep with her mother in mind.

 _Like before, she saw silver spots in the dark._

 _Then there was the sunrise as she heard a voice call out to her._

 _"Ruby! There is a way to control that silver power without extreme emotion, but it takes years of practise. Please don't fight her! It's the one thing I never wanted you to know about…." The voice pleaded._

 _It belonged to Summer Rose._

 _She became visible in the sunset: She was almost the spitting image of Ruby, having the same silver eyes, fair complexion, and graduating black-into-red hair that was shoulder length hair tied back in a half-up/half-down style and wore a hooded cloak which was white outside and red underneath with a similar outfit to her daughter's but mostly black underneath that included: a high-neck décolletage blouse with studded wristbands on the arms, a black and white overbust corset, a skirt with white tulle underneath, grey leggings, and knee-high boots with red soles._

 _"Mom?...I really wish you. I thought not thinking about what happened would make it easier but Dad and Yang helped me hang on to the memories….How…did you die?" Ruby asked, shakily._

 _Summer sighed._

 _"We don't have a lot of time…. Fighting her will end in pain and sadness. Find Maria and the one called 'Nico Phantom' to progress to the next stage. Take care of them, Ruby" Summer said, softly._

 _Ruby managed to get a hug from Summer before waking up._

"Did it work?" Yang asked.

Ruby nodded.

"I…saw Mom. And she gave me a warning about fighting Salem but…we have no choice" she stated.

"Young Ruby, that was only the first stage. The second stage can be achieved with Maria's help in Atlas" Mia pointed out.

"I will go with you to help find anyone else you need for the next part" Mari offered.

"What about the hunter? This 'Salem' they speak of?" Gavin asked in fear.

"I'll be careful. There's still someone I need to reunite with" Mari added.

"We need to find someone called Nico Phantom next" Ruby recalled.

-At Shade Academy 2 days later-

Team CVFY found one short file on someone called 'The Crown' and hypothesised the link between them and the two huntsmen they put in jail to Theodore.

"Can you ask Qrow to come to my office please? I'd like to know why your friends are actually here" he requested.

"Yes, sir" Coco replied as she and her team left the office.

When Qrow, Ruby and the others returned to the city with Mari, the school assembly started.

"Students, as you know, we've been getting a lot of refugees from the fall of Beacon and Haven over the last two years and a few months. That's why I've decided you'll all be reorganised into new teams as part of the new initiation. It will help you form more bonds and getting used to the rules of Vacuo" Theodore announced.

The students chattered with concern at the news.

Team SSSN and CVFY looked at each other.

We're gonna be separated?! Fox sent in alarm.

"We…We can handle this as long as he helps us with this mystery on our hands" Coco reassured them.

Even as she spoke, none of them felt confident about this.

That evening, Qrow arrived at Theodore's office with Ruby's team along with Jaune, Ren and Nora.

Mari stayed with Team SSSN for her own safety during this meeting.

It took a while but Qrow got Theodore up to speed with what happened in Haven.

"So, Ozpin reincarnated in Oscar and got kidnapped. What is your plan if you manage to help protect my school and then head to Atlas? You won't be able to convince Ironwood without Oz, Qrow" Theodore stated, rather harshly.

Qrow sighed.

"I know. I was hoping you could assist with that" he suggested.

"Given the character Team CVFY mentioned 'The Crown' is targeting people with powerful Semblances, there's a chance they're connected to Salem. I'd love to help but I promised I'd help investigate 'The Crown' for them" Theo pointed out.

"Do you know anyone called Nico Phantom or at least where the Summer Maiden is?" Ruby asked.

"Nico Phantom? I think he's one of the huntsmen that graduated from Beacon 4 years ago. He studied here first before transferring over to Vale. As for the maiden, she's perfectly safe. I suggest finding Nico first before I show you the Summer Maiden" the Professor said, sternly.

The group left with Qrow staying behind to catch with Theo for a while.

Ruby and friends went around asking about Nico until they accidently found him as he was trying to avoid being seen by Hazel and Mercury.

"Are you Nico?" Ruby questioned.

"Yes, but we need to talk in a safe place not here" he said quickly as he led them inside a safety hut.

"Your hat…it reminds me of Roman" Blake pointed out.

"I remember that guy…super bad news. I assure you I am in no way like him or Adam" Nico stated.

"We were told to find you. Where you going to leave a second ago?" Weiss questioned.

"Well, yes. That Mercury and Hazel guy are here. I think they intend to find me as well" Nico shared.

"They're here in Vacuo?!" Mari began to have a panic attack from stress.

Weiss and Ren did their best to calm her down with his semblance.

"They….they can't know I'm alive" Mari whispered.

"We'll protect you" Jaune reassured her.

She gave him a very small smile.

"We were told to find you first before gaining the information we need to protect the school" Ren explained.

"Any idea why?" Ruby added.

Nico thought for a moment.

"It could be because of my skill set or…one of my secrets" He said, softly.

"Like what?" Nora asked.

"How about we take you to Professor Theodore and then you can tell us?" Ruby offered.

"Alright" Nico replied.

-Meanwhile-

Hazel sent a message through the underground system to Ginger and Olive regarding the uniforms for the Vacuo branch of the Black Talons.

He suggested making about 40 for each branch first, each with a bird theme and the black talons of an eagle to symbolise the whole group on the back.

They were to get assistance from a fashion designer who worked in Vacuo City: A tanuki faunus in a red and green strawberry themed outfit called Midori (pronounced MEE-DO-REE) Fresa along with others from the other kingdoms.

At present, they had managed to finalise the design for the Mistral branch:

A blue, black and red uniform with raven patterns for Mistral with a raven based mask (Ash and Olive's version was special class due to ranks).

Their intention was to have the Vacuo uniforms ready in time for the 'plan' to be put in motion.

 **-Underneath Shade Academy-**

A voice was heard singing about hummingbirds and marigolds and lost love.

-To be continued-

 **I hope you enjoyed chapter 12.**

 **I know it took a while I'm getting there. I haven't figured out exactly how the fall of shade will happen yet but for now I'm gonna take a little break from this story for a bit and switch to something else ok?**

 **Here are some codes in the meantime:**

 **Vdohp lv wkh nhb.  
D zdu lv frplqj...  
Wklv zruog lv sduw ri d kxjh Pxowlyhuvh.**

 **See ya next time...possibly November.**

 **Grace, out!**

 **Note: Midori was green in Japanese and Fresa was Spanish for Strawberry.**

 **Midori's allusion was a combination of Drupe from _Ok KO! Let's be heroes_ and Tanya Keys from _Mao Mao: heroes of Pure heart_.**


End file.
